


Growing out of the Present

by Fore



Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-15
Updated: 2018-02-01
Packaged: 2018-08-22 13:15:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 37,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8287079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fore/pseuds/Fore
Summary: While Gideon Grey has grown and flourished in Bunny Burrows, Travis has only met hardship and desperation in the city of Zootopia. Suddenly he has an opportunity he can't miss; join the biggest crime family in Tundra town by performing whatever mysterious job that Raymond, a polar bear belonging to said family, orders him to do. Meanwhile, Gideon Grey is hired as a pastry chef for Mr. Big's nephew's wedding, learning that admitting his own sexuality is easier in the cold Tundra Town than the rural culture in Bunny Burrows. But when Judy and Nick drop in searching for Travis, he's torn between helping out an old friend or keeping his nose where it belongs.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the most complicated, indulgent shipping for an OTP I have ever done. Hopefully I'll have more chapters done pretty soon. Hope folks like it!

“I don’t know, Mr. H. It sounds too good to be true to be completely honest,” Gideon Grey muttered. He set the pies beside the Hopps family stall, releasing a sigh that sent his whole body sagging forward. He felt like an overcooked stew, uncertainty bubbling up in his guts that threatened to spill out into blubbering. “Zootopia just sounds like a rough and tumble sort of place. Even if it’s just one gig-I dunno!” He grunted, exasperated from the whole affair.

“Oh, I agree, Gid.” Stu interrupted, nodding his head quickly. “No one who’s lived here their whole lives in Bunnyburrows can ever say they were happier moving to the big city.” 

“Not everyone, Stu. I know we’ve still got bushels of kids, but how could you forget Judy, honestly.” Bonnie said, rolling her eyes as she took each pie from Gideon’s tray. She laid them in little boxes, gently, and taping them shut before setting them out to sell. It was nice seeing the image of Gideon Grey’s Good Baked Stuff and the Hopps Produce business slogans and images next to each other on the box, even if it almost covered the entire product. 

Gideon Grey smiled, giving a sheepish grin as he listened to Bonnie talk in her concerned, motherly tone that she brought out whenever it came to business with the fox. “Lets look at the facts,” She said, counting them on her fingers as they came up, “You’re well off for a fox your age, you’ve got a good reputation for your bakery, and two very appreciative business partners. But I think it’s important to consider whether you want that to be all you want for the next, oh, thirty or so years?”

“Way to play weasel’s advocate, Bon.” Stu said, rolling his eyes. “Listen Gid, my Dad always said ‘you can’t take the blue out of a blueberry’. You’re a country fox, born and raised, who’s to say these ‘who-evers’ aren’t going to take advantage of you.” Stu laughed, tugging on his overalls confidently. “I mean, come on, what’re they going to pay you drive out to Zootopia, spend a weekend in the Tundra District-”

“Tundra Town, Stu.” Bonnie said, correcting him with a stern look.

“Uh huh! Tundratown, thanks, and live in a perpetual winter while making little baby sized cakes for mice or voles or whatever these folks are. Don’t you think your big paws are a bit too thick for that kind of work? I mean, does that sound like a good business opportunity?”

Gideon frowned deeply, shrugging. His ears flattened as he stammered. “I mean, gee, I can’t rightly say! I could make ‘em real small, I suppose, but they had a real good pitch Mr. H! You should have heard him! A-an-an-and their paying top dollar for my hotel and everything on top of what they want to hire me for!”

“I just don’t think it’s good to take days off when we’ve got the fair coming up.” Stu said, shaking his head. “You have to consider how much net loss this trip will cost you if you have to close the bakery while you’re out of town.”

Bonnie stepped between the two, taking the momentum away from her husband. “That’s a good idea! We can work this out with some money logic. So,” She laid a paw on Gideon’s arm. “What was the initial offer?”

“Eight-thousand, Mrs. H.”

“Pardon?” Bonnie said, her jaw going slack.

Gideon shrugged. “Eight thousand, but they bunked it up to ten if I could make the trip tomorrow and-”

“Ta-taaa-tata-taaaaaake the job.” Stu said suddenly, stammering as his foot thumped the dirt viciously. His eyes bulged, agape at the fox’s lack of energy. “One thing city folks are good for is the money they can toss around! Gid, think about it! You could finally buy that replacement oven you’ve been wanting!”

“I mean, yeah, but I hate leaving you folks out to dry while I’m gone. You done so much for me-” The plump fox was shushed by a upturned paw from Bonnie.

“Don’t bother with that kind of talk. This is a big step for your future, you could do great things with that money, Gideon. If you think you can do the job they want you to do, I’d do it. Gracious, what’s all this for anyway?”

Gid shrugged again. He wasn’t sure how to feel just yet. “All I heard is they got a cute wedding going on.”

 

\- - - 

 

Travis grunted, closing his eyes shut as he tried to hide his discomfort. Duke hunched over the smaller mustelid’s prone body, curled against the ferret and pumping his hips against his rear with a rapid fury. The weasel hadn’t bothered with a sticking on a condom or lube, just shoved himself inside while Travis was still dozing. It was a harsh way to greet the day, but it was better than paying rent. Travis wouldn’t have to wait long, he reminded himself. Duke Weaselton didn’t have any other set pace besides fast which meant it wouldn’t be long before-

“Ooooo, here it comes, bitch!”

Right on time, like a subway train. Travis doubted he was the only one who had a ticket for this particular ride, but maybe he was the only one benefiting from it. He cracked an eye and took in the rundown dump of a hovel that they called home. The bed was nothing more than a dead mattress left out in the rain that they had dragged back and the walls kept out little but prying eyes. Here there was no comfort, not anymore at least. Only a brief respite from yesterdays troubles.

The ferret felt claws digging into his bare chest and he gritted his teeth as Duke’s thrusts turned into a sharp piston, rocking Travis roughly as Duke’s orgasm forced his lithe body to convulse. He chattered wordlessly, dooking into Travis’ ear and grinding his dick as deep as he could manage. Despite how into it the weasel was, Travis felt nothing but a stern patience. What was he to Duke? He didn’t have much of a clue. Flatmate didn’t sound reasonable since he didn’t pay rent. He wasn’t a whore either. Duke didn’t give him any money for the sex, only a small stipend for their petty schemes on the streets. He sure as hell wasn’t a boyfriend. This guy was trash and Travis knew it. Duke probably knew it too. He probably got too miserable to care anymore.

Duke panted, his humps twisting into the ferret’s rump, getting as much use as he could out of his morning. “That’s good stuff, kid. Tell you what; breakfast is on me today. Pick something up on the way to the masses, okay?” Before Travis could start appreciating the oddly kind gesture, he felt fingers around his throat, clenching, clutching the very breath from his lungs as the weasel’s muzzle nudged against his ear. “We’re crushing the rest of our stock today, so make sure you advertise to some folks with big pockets down for my stall of bootleg baubles before you get back here tonight. I’ll take care of the rest. Ya got that?”

Travis nodded, wheezing helplessly until Duke had enough of his thrill. Travis let him indulge, just to pacify him from doing anything worse if it came to mind. Duke clambered off of the ferret, running a paw along the ferret’s tail, sneering as he gave Travis’ ass a hard smack. “This is why I love ya. Thanks for the tush, kid. Better than any pussy I could snag on the corner of the block. That’s a compliment, a free one too.” He stepped over the prone mustelid, throwing on his shirt and pants and slamming the door behind him as he headed out into the streets of Zootopia.

Travis was sore, but that was just another fact of life. Here in Zootopia, you could be anything. That is, anything that’ll help you survive another day. For Travis that meant doing whatever Duke told him to do and selling his own brand of tail in the back alleys and in the seedy corners of Downtown. That or scamming the dullest animals he could find.

No shower. Just a scratchy towel to wipe off the seeping fluids Duke left behind to scrub off. He’d be able to use a storm drain as a makeshift way of keeping his hygiene somewhat average next time it rained. That hadn’t been in a week though, so he was starting to stink like the randy weasel. 

He looked at himself; clothes that he’d stolen from a donation pile and a wad of money that was enough to buy a donut or something cheap. Travis hit the streets, keeping a wary eye out. There weren’t many out who would put up much effort to chase down a scrambling mustelid like Travis, but they could catch him off guard and mug him if need be. First things first; tell lies. He roamed an electronics shop, picking out a few folks, maybe a family or two that were browsing and he’d guffaw at the prices. Thirty dollars for a kids movie? Pssssh! A wink and a smile and a direction to point them in and the next step was all in Duke’s corner. Travis always had a better understanding on how to open up to folks, let them give you a second glance and ignore that critical first impression.

Eight storefronts later, his phone buzzed. Travis clenched his eyes shut as he pulled it out, wary about whether he’d see a new message from the weasel asking for a booty call. He cracked an eyelid and released a heavy sigh of relief. It was just Raymond. Ironically, he’d rather deal with the massive polar bear than Weaselton, even if it meant taking a tram over to Tundra Town. 

“Hey,” Travis mumbled, keeping his tone low. “What’cha want?”

The bears voice on the other end carried a rumble of amusement that made the ferret’s bones tremble. It was still a rumble from a giant fucking polar bear, how could he not shiver a bit? “We’re not even on a first name basis yet? Figures.” The coy tone on the other end of the call made Travis roll his eyes, but he kept his ears open as Raymond continued. “I got a job for you if you want to make a lot of money. Just a waiter gig for Mr. Big.”

“A waiter?” Travis stammered, appalled at the offer. “I’m not getting an interview first or anything?”

“With Mr. Big? Haha, you better hope the only thing he says to you is ‘thanks for the connoli’ when you hand it to him from the platter.”

Travis nibbled the edges of his muzzle, his concern rising. “I thought you’d get me into one of his businesses or something, like, help run things a bit. Can’t you get something more, like, appropriate? I sure as hell ain’t muscle for hire and a waiter is just embarrassing.”

The booming voice on the other end guffawed and the ferret felt head rise up to his flattened ears. “You ain’t got smarts for hire either. Take the job and be happy about it.”

“Shut up! I got plenty of stuff to offer. I went to college, y’know!”

“Dropped out too. Nice job getting into the program, but you should have learned school is just a chump scam, kiddo.” Travis’ heart sunk at the demeaning tone that was thrust at him from the other end of the line. “Don’t think you have any secrets from me or Mr. Big, kid. We got your whole life wrapped up in a little spreadsheet and you’re lucky you ain’t done any heavy crimes or we wouldn’t be talking. Some the stuff I’m reading about you is just pitiful. Lucky you got out with a misdemeanor from hanging out with that fox. Smartest decision of your life was cutting tied. Everything after that?” He heard another rumble of humor that made his ears burn. “That’s your own damn fault. Just do what I say and take the job I’m offering, alright? Accept the position, dumb as it is, wear a fancy outfit, and serve tiny cakes to a bunch of rodents at a teeny, tiny wedding. Easy enough for a fuck-up like you.”

The mustelid itched his neck irritably, his voice cracking as he spoke. “You told me you’d get me into the family. I need something better than this dump I’m trapped in Raymond, you promised-”

Travis paused, afraid to breathe when all he heard was silence on the other end. He thought he’d done the worst thing possible; snap back, start making demands, whine and bitch like he actually deserved sympathy. 

“Did you know the ZPD has a warrant out on you right now?”

Travis felt his lungs squeeze all the air out in a wheezing gasp. “What?”

“Yeah, you and that weasel scum have done enough small time crime to get the animals-in-blue hunting for you.” The impossible happened after a breathless second. The bear’s tone softened, “Listen, if you’re that desperate for something on the inside I could work you in. Not with the warrant, though. I’ll help make that disappear. This ain’t free, you understand? You owe me a favor for this.” Raymond’s voice had grown quieter, hesitant, but Travis barreled forward.

“Totally! Anything, I mean it! You won’t be disappointed! Thankya!”

“Shut your mouth, alright? You want to be apart of the family, you got to start learning when to talk and when to just shut up do what your told. You understand?”

Travis opened his mouth, then closed it. He swallowed hard, terrified and excited at the prospect of what was ahead of him.

“Good. First things first, you don’t tell anyone. Not even that annoying weasel you got laying pipe in you.”

Travis’ ears flushed, and he began to come up with some sort of coy comeback, but swallowed it down with a shameful grunt.

“Second, I need you get your cute little tail here and crawl in my pants. I’m pulling tough strings here for your sake, so there’s not going to any more lip from you when I make a booty call. When my dick get hard, you’re the cavalry. Got it?”

“Yes, sure, fine.” Travis said quickly. He heard an amused chuckle on the other end, the kind that make his pants tight and his head fuzzy. At first, he’d been reserved about selling himself to the bear, earning cash and favors here and there in Tundratown. He told himself not to be bothered by it. It’s all he had left to give, really. Sex had put a roof over his head and now it might get him a foot in the door on a real career. A mostly illegal one, but it was worth choking on bear cock if it meant you could have the most expensive wines and liquor to wash it down afterwords.

“Tundra Town,” Raymond said, letting a lustful growl carry over the phone. “One hour. I’ll wait in my car at the station and we’ll get you primed and ready.”

Then the call ended and Travis was left speechless on the hot, sunny street of Downtown. He could hardly believe what was happening. It would cost him an intimate time with a beast several times bigger than him, but Raymond might be gentler this time around. It was certainly someone he could pretend to enjoy having sex with. Duke was a different story; he rutted hard, fast, and cared for him as much as one would for a pet of sorts which was more than Travis could have asked for when he first met the weasel. Duke sold stolen DVDs for a living, pick pocketed and did all kinds of small, pathetic crimes to get by while the only thrill he might be rewarded with was a dominant romp atop the ferret. Small time crime lost its thrill and Travis could see what Duke had to offer if he stayed under the streetwise weasel’s care. Raymond offered something he hadn’t thought he’d have again and it was more than Weaselton would ever offer. 

Family. It was worth it no matter what Raymond wanted him to do.

 

\- - -

 

Gideon felt out of place. The tour of the hotel where he’d be staying and where the wedding was going to be held was daunting. The fox hadn’t felt so outside of his element since he first started taking his baking outside his own kitchen. The one he currently found himself in was almost alien compared to his own. His eyes scanned the metal counters, the tops giving off an almost blinding sheen and he stared at several utensils who’s purpose or use escaped him. The plump fox shifted uncomfortably in his tight outfit towards the small shrew. “I already brought all my stuff, Mr. B. You didn’t have to go to all this trouble.” Gideon’s voice was slow and in awe of the size of the bakery he’d been provided.

“Nonsense-” Mr. Big waved a small paw at the fox’s remarks- “I mean what I say, Mr. Grey. My nephew deserves only the best.”

“Shucks, no offense but I’m hardly the best at anything!”

This somehow got a dry chuckle out of the small rodent as he walked along the top of the metal counter. “My boy, I learned very early on that if you have a particular talent you should stick to it. Eventually I was rewarded handsomely for all my perseverance. Yours is no different.”

“Sorry, this is just, uh,” Gid took in a deep breath, still taken aback by the size of the oven he was working with and the amount of dials alone that covered the outside panel. “I just don’t think you had to call in a fox from Bunnyburrows of all places to bake for a wedding, especially when my hands are as big as five of you, pardon me for saying.”

The polar bears outside the kitchen suddenly poked their great heads into the room through the swinging door, but froze at the sight of a single raised hand from Mr. Big. The sight of them made Gid’s heart beat a little fast. He was used to being the biggest thing around and the bears outclassed him by several feet. Thankfully, they receded back into the ballroom just outside the grand kitchen Gideon Grey would be in charge of. 

Mr. Big sighed. “Mr. Grey, do you know who my nephew is marrying?”

“No sir, afraid not.” About the only thing he knew about this family was that they were loaded with dough, the green kind that would get Gideon all kinds of new things to give his bakery the update it needed.

“Have a look. It’s important that you understand our struggle.” Mr. Big reached into his front pocket, pulling out a small phone. He dragged his claw along the screen, turning it up towards the fox. Gideon squinted and at first thought it odd that he was looking at a lean hare in the photo, but his eyes widened when he saw a small shrew hanging off of the rabbit’s lopsided ear. Both of the men in the photo smiled widely and Gideon felt a short pang of admiration for the two. 

“Happy, aren’t they?” Mr. Big asked.

Gideon nodded firmly, nibbling his cheek before answering. “Yeah, for sure! I’m still a little out of sorts about the whole thing.”

The old shrew lifted a bushy eyebrow.

Gideon felt the room almost go cold with that brief, curious pause and he felt as nervous from that sharp change in the shrew’s expression than from the huge bears. “I mean-uh, I know it’s still a little weird for different folks to mingle and such.” He swallowed, giving one of his flattened ear a slight itch. “Like, um, birds of a feather flock together and all that junk they told us in school.”

“You find it odd that my nephew is marrying a rabbit?” Mr. Big’s words took on a request for clarification rather than an outright question.

“Not odd, just a little surprised. I would have figured you for someone who liked keeping things all traditional and what-not.”

To his surprise, Mr. Big frown started to lift into an amused grin. “My friend, in order to be successful you’ve got to learn to change with the times. Right now, our city is moving towards accepting all walks of life. I was more worried you’d be affronted at providing your services for their wedding, being from where you are.”

Gideon flicked his ears forward, confused. “Why?”

The shrew shot him an equally confused look. “Isn’t it obvious?”

“Um,” Gideon brought the picture back into his brain, tugging at what might twist him the wrong way. It boggled his mind that he was supposed to be unsettled by something. “Naw, Mr. Big, I’m a little slow with these sorts of things.”

“The rabbit is from your part of the country-side and my good, honest nephew hoped to bring a bit of that country flavor to grace their wedding day. Sadly,” The glance he gave the fox softened. “It took six bakers who received the same offer you did before we contacted you.”

Blinking, Gideon Grey shook his head from side to side, his muzzle turned quizzically down to the shrew. “You pulling my tail? Why the heck would you turn something like this down? That’s a lot of money you were swinging there, Mr. B!”

The shrew’s smile finally showed some teeth. He was starting to like the rotund baker. “Because people still refuse to change and it makes them cruel. My nephew discovered this after trying to arrange this for his husband. It was then he asked for my help.” Mr. Big paused, letting it dwell a little longer for Gideon’s sake. “Somehow, people have learned to accept that predator and prey can live together in peace, but not that two boys can marry one another. Shameful.” He finished, sighing deeply.

“You’re joking? Six bakers turned you down just because your nephew likes this cute bunny boy?” Gid said, his jaw going slack.

“When it comes to my family, Mr. Grey, I never joke.”

“Well,” The fox adjusted the little bakers jacket around his midsection, beginning to feel a bit of pride in the ridiculous outfit. “You can rest assured I’ll do my best to make this one tasty wedding for those two!”

“I’d expected as much.” The shrew rang a bell he produced from his front pocket and a massive bear entered the kitchen, carrying a small chair in his palms.

Gideon kept his wide grin, but backed off a good distance from the immense mass of predator moving his way. He went to turn his attention to the order of pastries he’d have to prepare for the big day. His big eyes scanned the pictures of tiny pastries, gnawing his tongue as he studied the long list of ingredients. He’d make a few handy adjustments to help bring out that country theme they’d brought him on for. Thankfully, the guest list was made up of mostly rabbits, but he was certain he could whip up something small and delicate for the smaller folk.

Outside the kitchen, Mr. Big sat back in his chair, his mind at ease. In Koslov’s steady paws, he let his limbs sag and his heart wind down. “You were right. The fox was the right one to go with.”

“This wouldn’t have been such trouble if we would have just bought a baker in the city.” The polar bear grumbled, moving at a pace that kept his boss upright. It was a skill that he hadn’t ever expected to have picked up, but then again he’d never have expected to make a living as a shrew’s right hand man as long as he did.

“You know how my nephew is, Koslov. He would have known if we had lied. Not that I’m in favor of this whole affair. He spoils that rabbit.”

“He learned it from you.”

“Your size belays your wit, but I only care for the former. Just be thankful this worked out. The fox has the speech, the look, and most importantly the skill. It helped that he was sympathetic to my nephew’s plight.”

“Raymond was right then?”

“For once, yes. Give him my thanks for speaking up. It must have been difficult to pick out a gay baker that far out of the city, especially when he doesn’t advertise it. I don’t know where he heard about Gideon Grey, but his initiative is to be commended.”

The heavyset bear grumbled. “He didn’t do it out of loyalty, boss. He’ll want a higher position than security.”

“He’ll take what we give him and like it.”

“I talked to him and he’d like someone to fill in a post at the reception; just a waiter, a friend of his. I’ve looked at the application. It checks out.”

Mr. Big waved his hand dismissively. “Fine, fine. Just make sure he understands how far my appreciative nature can go. No one makes demands of me.”

“And yet, your nephew-”

The shrew turned and the bear caught sight of the very thin edge of the shrew’s white eyes regarding him, an annoyed frown regarding him. “Remember how I prefer the former, Koslov?”

A wry grin spread across the bears muzzle, but he obliged with what he was accustomed to. Silence.

 

\- - - 

 

Travis rifled through his things back at the apartment, what little there was, and began stuffing it into his little knapsack. It was all just sentimental stuff; a science-fiction paperback he loved back in high school, some old game cartridges he kept after the sold the console for groceries during the rougher months awhile back, and what last little bits of clean clothes he had left (clean being a term used loosely). He wasn’t sure when he’d be ready to leave, but he at least wanted to be ready when the job paid off. Sure it’d be a change of scenery, but he heard there some ferrets who were more used to the cold than Downtown. Of course, he had to get the train fare he’d need to get to Tundratown.

Besides, Raymond would front him for the night. A night with him was easier to bear than waiting for the twitchy weasel to simmer down after a randy fucking before bed. As Travis gave the room one more glance, he felt one short pang of guilt. True, he was leaving for something better, but he enjoyed the brief times he really felt like the weasel was looking out for him.

The ferret turned and was brought to a sharp halt as he heard the door’s knob being jostled with and before he could think of a way out Duke Weaselton slunk through the door. The fellow mustelid whole body seemed to get taller once he noticed Travis; his ears pointed up, his back straightened and his legs stretched out till he was higher than the ferret’s slumped posture.

After a toothy grin, he said, “Hey, hey! My boy Travis, trying to clock out early?”

The ferret struggled for an answer, tearing his eyes from the floor to the weasel’s beaming face. “Figured I could snag more people if I had some product to show them. Did you have the new movie hanging around?” Maybe he could just make out with a bootleg and duck out of this pit the weasel had him in.

“Forget that! Sold out of the stock today so you can rest easy for once. Speaking of which,” The weasel fished around in his pockets, biting the edge of his as he brought out two thick wads of cash and held one out to Travis. “Here’s your cut. Don’t who you saddled into stopping by my stall but they cleaned it out!”

“That’s great!” Travis feigned delight as he tentatively reached out for the money. That was the largest split he’d ever been offered. It even looked like a fifty-fifty cut of the profits compared to the cash in the weasel’s other paw. It wasn’t like Duke to ever share. Especially not when there was a huge spike in profits. He had a mind for dolling out a percentage and it wasn’t unheard of for Travis to be saddled with an obscure amount of dollars and cents that as outweighed by Duke’s haul.

Travis must have been too slow, prompting the weasel to take a bold step up to the ferret. Their chests were practically touching as he dipped the edge of the cash wad he had offered to Travis and swirled it around the curve of the loose shirt the younger mustelid was wearing. “Say, you been awful helpful lately, kid. Patient too considering the crap I’ve put you through. I was thinking maybe you deserved a little bonus on the side.” Duke slipped the ferret’s cut of the profit into his white shirt and after it fell into the folds the weasel’s dull claw tipped slowly circled around Travis’ fuzzy chest. “Something to celebrate the longevity of our relationship on and off the books.”

If it wasn’t the proximity of the two men that gave away what sort of ‘bonus’ Duke was referring to, it became evident as Travis’ waistband was yanked open and a grubby paw shoved down past the rim of his underwear. A small noise of surprise and discomfort rose up out of Travis’ throat. It was quickly shushed as Duke muzzle suddenly engulfed his. It was an intimate maneuver he’d never expected the weasel to ever be capable and for that shocked, confused moment he felt his arousal build as the twitchy lips mouthed against his own. It was brief, but it left enough of an opening for him to forget what he was supposed to be doing; cutting ties, moving on, tearing out a new future and leaving behind anything that might hold him back.

Zootopia was a place where you could be anything, do anything, but only if you were willing to hurt a few people along the way. Duke Weaselton had been a clear teacher of that mantra. If that were the case then why was he getting hard from this? Duke cupped his balls delicately, massaging them gently and running his them around the pink cock tip sliding out from his sheathe. He’d never known the weasel to be a soft lover. He was rough, impatient, insistent on getting off on his terms. 

“I been an asshole, I know.” Duke breathed, giving the emerging ferret dick a firmer stroke. “I’m not gonna bounce my shit off you just ‘cause I’m pissy about some lame junk anymore.” Duke kissed him again, hard and with tongue. Actual tongue, which was like saying a dog learned how to use a fork at a formal dinner party. This wasn’t the weasel he bent over for. Travis didn’t deserve a fair cut, a fair chance at an orgasm, or to have someone making these kinds of promises again.

“I want you to fuck me.” Duke said, a playful growl rising up from his throat as he lapped at Travis’ neck. “I’m an asshole so you deserve to fuck me like one.” He lingered a moment more, just long enough to rub fur on fur, muzzle against muzzle, before he turned away and rolled onto the bed. Travis watched, dumbfounded, aroused, and simply torn on which direction to go.

Duke began to seductively slither his shorts down his thighs. The waistband got stuck around his tail end and the weasel began to clumsily jerk and kick them off in a fit of frustration. He regained his composure and reclined onto his back, lifting his legs and cupping a hand under his sack to give Travis a telling view if his bare ass.

If ever there was a time when Travis should walk away, it was now. He just needed to swivel his body to face the door, walk a few steps and let it shut behind him and then he’d have Weaselton and the burden of living in Downtown Zootopia would forever be behind him. Yet-

He could just enjoy this last moment with Duke. He owed it to the scoundrel after this honest effort he was putting in to treat his long time fuck buddy (were they buddies? What was happening? How did it come to this?) to a turn on top. Duke never bottomed. As Travis knelt on the edge of the bed he lifted his shirt, tossing it aside and wiggling his shorts off. His red briefs bulged with his turgid arousal. No chance was he going to pass this by.

Duke raised an eyebrow, glancing at the ferret’s groin. “Oof, you’re packing down there aren’t you? Come on champ, slam it home!”

Travis walked over towards the bed, dropping to his knees and leaning over the long body of the weasel. He wasn’t used to seeing the weasel’s face when they had sex. The sounds and the jerky movements of Duke’s noodly body was the most he was accustomed to and all of it was rough, arrogant, out to get a juicy orgasm as quick as possible. Here he watched patiently as Travis propped himself up and lowered his underwear, dipping his hips towards the base of the weasel’s tail. 

The ferret paused, feeling a slick wetness around the inner curve of Duke’s ass cheeks. Did you lubed before you came in here?” Travis asked incredulously.

“Hey, only the best for you baby,” Duke said, giving the ferret a toothy smile.

Travis gawked at the weasel. “How much did you use?”

“The whole can. Why?” He gave Travis a queried look and the ferret couldn’t help but imagine the weasel wiping his ass in the nearby alley before he had come up. 

With a shivering chuckle, Travis lowered himself onto the weasel’s chest, nuzzling the bristly fuzz with his muzzle. His hips pushed forward and to his delight he found the weasel’s puckered ring was slick enough to let the initial push to penetrate. A low groan rolled off Travis’ tongue as he eased himself in, pressing himself to the weasel’s chest as his shaft continued to sink into Duke.

“Keep going babe.” The weasel said through a hum that constituted a mix of pain or pleasure. The fellow mustelid ran his hands along Travis’ shoulders, digging his blunt claws into his back as the ferrets groin suddenly mashed against the weasel’s. “Snug, ain’t I?” He said with a chuckle.

“Yeah,” Travis mumbled, shivering from the tightness clamping around his cock. He couldn’t fathom Duke would be so relaxed while having someone shove dick in his ass. The weasel remained still for the most part, only twitching as Travis gave a small adjustment here and there. 

“What are you waiting for?” Duke lifted his legs, pushing his rump against Travis crotch. “I ain’t on my back for a nap here, kid.”

“Sorry, I just don’t-” The ferret paused, his body shuddering. “-do this a whole lot.”

“What, fucking? Do I need to pull the instruction manual or something?”

“No, no! Just let me ease into it.” Travis stammered, afraid he might mess this up somehow. Of course, one look at the randy grin Duke was wearing and he knew he was getting some fun teasing the ferret even with his dick stuffed in his ass.

No time like the present, Travis thought. He rolled his hips back, grunting as his shaft pulled loose and quickly pushed himself forward. He did it again, finding the smooth rhythm that was aided by the copious amount of lube that plastered the weasel’s backside. Duke was still tight, but in only a minute he was rocking his lithe hips back and forth. Duke, meanwhile, laid back and his eyes closed. His face was twisted in a scraggly, perverted grin that muffled the sharp noises that rose up from his throat as Travis began to thrust.

The ferret took in a long, steady breath, filling his nose with the heady scent of the weasel underneath him. It was nicer than most days since they hadn’t gone dump diving, but the hot sun and the excitement of the situation was building a bitter musky aroma that only drove Travis wild. He lifted the rim of Duke’s shirt, dipping his nose under the rim and pushing it aside as he nuzzled Duke’s fuzzy chest and beginning to hump in earnest.

“Yeah, faster,” Duke said through clenched teeth. Travis obliged, figuring he must have been hitting the right spots to bring such a big smile on the weasel’s face. He finally noticed the warm bobbing of Duke’s erection against his stomach, his long body arched over the weasel’s hard-on. Duke reached between their torso’s, his hand gliding along his shaft and jerking himself off in a rapid fashion.

“Duke, I’m close.” Travis couldn’t go much longer than this. His crotch bumped hard against the weasel’s rump, a soft smack of fur on fur echoing in their tiny apartment.

Duke only responded with a high pitched hum, his arms falling onto the bed and clutching the mattress. His limp, long body rocked with every thrust and Travis suddenly felt warm splatters across his belly, accompanied the moist sound of the weasel’s fist pumping out his load.

For a moment, Travis was able to forget everything outside this room. In this heated second, he believed this thing with Duke Weaselton could turn into something good. He stretched out over the weasel, searching for his hands and curling his fingers over them. He released a series of high pitched, trembling whimpers as he bucked into the weasel’s hole. Pleasure arced through his limbs as he felt his balls tighten, pouring out a days worth of stress and torment into the weasel. A low groan erupted from Duke, sensing the ferrets climax and meeting every thrust of his lover with a push of his own, milking Travis for all he was worth.

All those sensations suddenly dwindled to nothing but tired breaths and limp limbs. Travis propped himself up on his forearms, his head resting against Duke’s shoulder. His eyes focused on the ragged, hard floor and the stained mattress beneath them. He heard the noise of the traffic of Downtown, oblivious to him and what he had just done. Regret, mountains of it, somehow rushed over him after the pulse of pleasure that overcame him. He shouldn’t be here, he reminded himself.

Initially, his thoughts turned to school, to the science department. Then, it was flooded with Raymond’s voice-

“Aw-Aww crud!” Travis squealed, pushing himself up and forcing a sharp yelp out of Duke.

“AH! Ow, hey! Easy!” He squirmed out from under Travis, annoyed. “What’s your deal, Travis?”

“I have to, um,” He hesitated, then shook his head free of any doubts. This wasn’t where he belonged. “I’m going to be late for something!” He scrambled and darted for his clothes, throwing them on as he waddled towards the door.

“You leaving me without some afterglow cuddles? That’s just cruel, kiddo.” Duke shouted as Travis started down the hallway.

He shouted back. “I’m sorry! I’ll make it up to you!” Did he really mean that? It didn’t matter.

If he’d learned anything it was that you couldn’t stay in one place to get to where you wanted. It got him out of Bunnyburrows and now it would get him out of Downtown.

 

\- - -

 

Gideon took little comfort in the hotel room. He paced from one end of the room and back rolling through the recipes he’d have to commit to memory. Just how much his measurements would have to be for the rodent pastries, how to slice and portion the cakes for the servers. Most stressful was how he would keep track of the oven on top of all this for the pies.

Worse, what would happen if he screwed this all up somehow? Too much salt or too little sugar could make or break a whole batch.

A knock at the door suddenly pulled him out of this stupor. As he hurried to answer it, he paused to quickly button up his front. The chef jacket he had to wear was still stuffy and he hoped he could get it stretched out a bit in his off time. 

“Hello, room service here! Somebody order ten pizza pies? Only meatballs and no sauce?” A jovial voice from the other side of the door shouted.

“Nick!” Another voice, this one female and familiar, spoke harshly. “Are you even capable of making a good first impression?”

“You say that like we’re supposed to be in uniform.”

Gideon opened the door, figuring it’d be best to get the pleasantries out of the way. Judy Hopps whirled, breaking out into a wide smile. “Gideon! Hey, how you fitting in?”

“Alright, I guess. Couldn’t care for the snow though.” He gave the little bunny a broad grin that went slack when he noticed a fox standing behind her. Wily looking guy, trimmed smile, lax eyes and Judy smiling while he stood behind her. For a moment, Gideon couldn’t think properly. Had she really forgiven him? He’d only repeated what he’d learned in therapy, it didn’t seem heartfelt or as regretful as he hoped it would be. Must have been terrifying for her to live with. He only remembered his claws cutting into Judy’s cheek, pushing her face in the dirt and-

Gideon Grey shook his head and forced a smile. A big one. He thought of a white room and kept it in his head every time his thoughts tried to pull back into a guilty verdict. It was just a thought, he reminded himself like he’d been taught by Dr. Marlowe. Just let the past pass by.

The leaner fox stepped forward, oblivious to all this, folding one arm behind his back and sticking the other out for Gideon to shake. “Nick Wilde, I’m Judy’s partner. I’m also a professional police officer.”

“Shucks, you got a funny one here, Jude. Didn’t know there were ‘professional’ police officers as opposed to regular ones.” Gideon said with a chuckle.

“Don’t pay him any attention. It only encourages him.” Judy said.

Gideon welcomed them into his hotel room, quickly closing the door behind him.

“Talk about out of the freezer and into the oven.” Nick said, already starting to loosen the fabric around his neck.

“Sorry, I’ve had the heater on since I checked in.”

Judy gaped at Gideon. “You got into town yesterday and you’ve had the heat on max since then?”

“Couldn’t you just wear a jacket?” Nick said adjusting the loose tie that corded itself around his neck.

Gideon shrugged, grinning broadly. “Not when I’m not fitting the hotel bill. Plus, this place is freezing! You’d think they could’ve had the country themed wedding down in the country instead of sticking it in the coldest place in the city.”

“Oh yeah!” Judy bounced onto the armchair in the room. “Mom and Pops told me about your job! Are you actually baking anything yet?”

“Not until tomorrow.”

“Any chance at getting a wedding cake sneak peek for us?” Judy asked.

“Heck no! I’m just trying to get a handle on the weirdo kitchen they got for me while making sure I have enough ingredients to make all the sweets and what-not. Besides, I don’t think they’d like me just letting anyone into the kitchen,” He chuckled. “Why are you coming to the wedding again?”

“Oh, you know how it goes with my family! When you have two hundred siblings you eventually get six hundred cousins and it kind of just blows up from there. That and I’m the godmother of Mr. Big’s daughter’s son which puts me somewhere on the totem pole of this really weird family structure which makes me some kind of,” She cringed her face slightly, ears tilting. “Um, Aunt-in-law? Does that count?”

Gid clapped his big paw to his brow, laughing. “Trust me, I wish that was easier to understand than half the stuff I got to whip up tomorrow night.”

“Hey, none of that. You got this gig, Gid. It’s not like you’re her to crash anyone’s wedding or anything.” She gave Nick a hard stare and he pretended not to notice.

“You, uh,” Gideon itched his neck, straining to not make this next question sound too suspicious. “You never told me what you wanted to talk about when you asked if we could talk. Awful sudden is all.”

“It isn’t anything important. I mean, we’re going to the same wedding, might as well make time to catch up. I want to make sure you’re doing fine-”

“I’m fine.” Gideon said a little too quickly.

Judy paused, gesturing to Nick. “And I figured I’d introduce you to Nick.”

“I’m her plus one to the festivity. Very thrilled for the happy couple.” Nick said in a neutral tone before raising his eyebrows inquisitively. “Say, heard anything from Travis Blackfoot lately, big guy?”

The question caught Gideon by surprise. He blinked in confusion, glancing at Judy who gawked at Nick. Apparently, something was amiss between these two and suddenly the whole visit started to stink. “No? Why would Travis-why’s he asking me something like that?” He turned away from the other fox and gaped at Judy.

“He isn’t supposed to since we didn’t come here to do police work.” Judy said, her voice growing harder and more annoyed as she turned to Nick. “I just wanted to talk to my friend, Nick. If that’s getting in the way of your ‘investigation’ you can go back to the room.”

“I’m just saying that if anybody would know where a wily ferret would be it would be his best buddy is all. See, I already asked and he doesn’t know. There, I’m satisfied. Are you satisfied?” He gave Gideon a smile. It was a kind of grin that a city slick fox would give a country bumpkin. “Thanks for the help, Big Gid. And now, I think I’ll excuse myself from this over of yours and help myself to a hot tub. I’d prefer boiled alive than baked.”

Nick waved over his shoulder at Judy as he walked out the door. “Seeya in our room, Carrots.”

The door slammed, but it was hard to tell if it was just the weight of the door or the fox who closed it. Regardless, it left Gideon with too many mixed feelings.

“I’m sorry.” Judy said, sighing with frustration. “He isn’t really like that.”

“Okay.” Gideon said. He sat on the edge of the bed, running a hand through his hair, gritting his teeth. “Is Travis in trouble?”

“Gideon.” Jusy leaned forward and took a deep breath. “You really haven’t heard from him? You’re telling the truth?”

“Of course I am! Is he in trouble or not?”

“There was a warrant for his arrest.” She said after a brief pause.

“What’d he do? Is he okay?”

“Gideon, this is going to be hard to explain so slow down and breathe for a second.” She waited as Gideon swallowed, slumping his shoulders and taking a long, deep breath before she continued. “The station had a warrant on file but it just vanished. It wasn’t dismissed or carried out. It’s just gone. That’s creepy mystery number one. We did some more digging and neither of us could work out where he went after he dropped out of college. We were hoping to talk to you after the wedding, but Nick is paranoid about something.”

Gideon nodded. Even having it spelled out like that, he still didn’t understand what was happening save for the fact that Travis had dug himself into a nasty situation. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“I don’t want you getting involved any more than you have to, Gideon. You’ve got a big enough job to do without worrying about dumb cop stuff.”

“It’s not dumb though!” Gideon barked, his ears folding back against his skull. “Travis got himself in trouble a-a-and he didn’t have me there to bail him outta it.” He realized, with embarrassment, that his voice was trembling. He wiped at something in his eye, rubbing the edge until he scrubbed out a persistent, ugly tear.

Judy expression softened. “You two were real close friends back then, weren’t you?”

“Sure, until we had to grow up. He was my best friend. I don’t want to say anything bad about him. I’m not sure how to feel about all this.”

“I don’t want you to talk about it if it’s going to hurt you, Gideon. That’s not what I came here to do. I want your help, but you don’t need to do it now if you don’t want to.”

“Nah,” He sniffled, smiling over to Judy Hopps, someone who somehow became more than three times the hero he could ever be. “Better get it off my chest. You deserve it after all the junk I put you through.”

“You know I’ve put that behind me, Gideon Grey. Haven’t you?”


	2. Growing out of the Present, second chapter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Travis gets the opportunity he's been hoping for and Gideon Grey manages to get to the bottom of why two ZPD officers are looking for his childhood friend.

The sound of Gideon Grey’s loud scream was cut short by a wide splash. Travis backed away from the pond’s edge, raising his arms up to block the spray of water that nearly doused him.

“Jeez Gid, you coulda waited until I had my clothes off!” The ferret barked.

The fox shook his head wildly, laughing. “It’s your fault for being too slow getting your clothes off!”

Travis growled as he shoved his pants down and wiggled out of his shirt and underwear, pausing just long enough to make sure it landed somewhere dry. He bounded over to the hill of rocks over looking the pond and leapt, screaming a mock battle cry until he dropped into the pond, pulling his knees and arms to his chest for a cannonball. To his dismay, a pitiful ‘ploosh’ followed, his long body doing little to make anything close to the big splash Gideon had made.

Gideon shook his head wildly, glaring at Travis as he gave the ferret a smirk, “Nice try, noodle boy!”

The thin mustelid bared his fangs and growled, but cut it off short to spit a stream of water from between his teeth and cackled as Gideon sputtered.

The chubby fox wiped his face, a playful growl prefacing his large bulk paddling towards the ferret. “Why you little-” He received another spurt of water from Travis and soon the two of them were darting around the pond’s deep end, one trying to catch the other. Travis proved that he was as quick a swimmer than the bigger predator could ever hope to be. It was about the only thing he was better than Gideon at other than studying. 

Fast as he was, he got tired after only a few minutes of dodging, diving and circling Gideon’s wild splashing. The fox could sense it and surged forward. He’d cornered Travis near the shallows and, thanks to his height, started running towards his friend, arms outstretched. Travis realized too late, knowing he couldn’t hope to dive under the fox now and flailed through the water, laughing wildly as he began to claw through the sand.

Travis was only able to make it onto the shore before he felt the mitts of the fox around his middle. He squirmed, his long and lithe body slipping out of Gideon’s grasp. He thought he’d won whatever game they’d been playing until the fox dived forward and landed on top of the ferret. The fox was quick to wrap his arms around Travis’ writhing stomach. 

“Okay.” Travis grunted, splaying out him limbs and laying flat on the ground. “You win.”

“Woo!” Gideon gasped, pushing himself up off of the ferret and lifting his arms in mock celebration. He was as tired as his friend, both of the boys letting out short, heavy puffs of breath as they hunkered down in the sand next to each other.

“A shame the pond’s not coming with us.” Gideon muttered.

Travis sat up, wringing out his tail. “We’re moving up to high school. Not like we’re moving to a whole ‘nother town.”

“But we can’t walk here after school no more. Dad’s got to drive me from now on because it’s too far.”

“Yeah.” Travis sighed, shrugging his shoulders. “Maybe we could just come here on the weekends?”

“Why’s high school got to change everything? We were doing just fine till now.”

Travis shrugged. “At least we can still hang out together.”

Gideon punched the ferret in the shoulder, but thankfully not hard enough to really hurt him. “Long as you can let me sneak through biology.”

The ferret winced but beat his fists on the fox’s shoulders playfully. “And what’s gonna happen when you gotta do a presentation? I can’t help you say half the stuff in the textbook, Gid!”

“Hey, speaking of biology.” The fox grinned deviously and stood up. “I got into my grandpa’s stack of mags. You gotta see this,” The young fox chuckled as he rushed over to where he had left his overalls and bag, drying his hands and digging inside until he pulled out a magazine with worn edges.

Travis took one look at the cover and grimaced. “Aw gross, what’s that?”

“Some old nudie book. I found a whole stack of them and it’s stuffed with mammals doing it.”

“You mean sex?”

“Yeah, fucking! You too nerdy to know what animals do when they get horny, Travis?”

The second of hesitation between the uncertainty on the ferret’s face and his response hung in the back of Gideon’s mind. His friend forced a laugh and poked the magazine. “Course I do!”

“Then you gotta see this,” The fox opened the magazine and began to flip through the pages of advertisements. Travis scanned each page, his eyes growing wider as Gideon stalled on a few pages where various animals were engaged in every uncouth manner of intimacy one could imagine. What shocked him more was the amount of naked males spread across the pages. He thought only girls were inside these things.

Suddenly, his eyes settled on one thing in particular.

“What’s wrong with that fox’s dick?” He asked.

Gideon turned towards the ferret kneeling beside him. “Whatcha mean?”

“His cock is broken or something.” Travis pointed a claw at the adult fox’s crotch, pointing out the bulbous knot emerging from the furry sheath.

“Are you dumb or something? That’s a knot, noodle boy. I thought you were good at biology.”

“That’s not what mine looks like.”

“That’s because you’re a ferret dummy. Not all mammals have the same junk!”

“Do you have have one of those too?”

Gideon gawked at the ferret then rolled his eyes. “I’m a fox, of course I do!”

“That’s weird dude.”

Gid’s expression tightened and he flipped through the magazine angrily, a devious grin spreading across his muzzle once he found what he needed. “Oh yeah? What about your dinky little ferret cock, huh? See there,” He stabbed the picture with his finger again and again, a slight growl rumbling up from his throat. “It’s so thin, it looks like a little twig. It’s probably snapped if you tried fucking anything with it.”

“Yeah, well, um,” Travis bit his lip, struggling to work out a good enough comeback. “Yours looks like it’d pop if someone poked it! Lemme get another-” He dug into Gideon’s bag and snatched out another and paused. He didn’t turn around, merely staring at the cover of the magazine. The stillness and silence from his friend eventually caught Gideon’s attention.

“What, you find something?”

Travis twitched, twisting his neck around to Gid. “Yo, you said these were all your grandpa’s?”

“I mean, there were whole boxes of ‘em. I just sort of grabbed whatever I could before he could catch me.”

“Boxes? Do you think he’d miss one?”

The fox’s tail began to wag a little, to Travis’ relief. “Heck, I was going to keep a few for myself. He’s not gonna miss a couple.”

“Sweet!” Travis hugged the magazine to his chest as he waddled over to his bag. He stared at the cover one last time, taking in the sight of a buff, male buffalo mounting a tiger. He studied the expression on the tiger’s face, twisted with the shock of the imminent orgasm caught by the camera. He rolled it up, jammed it into his backpack and left his back turned as he grabbed for his clothes. 

Travis turned his neck to glance at Gideon Grey once more. Yet, this time he didn’t just see his best friend drenched from a dunk in the pond. He felt his groin spark with a sensation he didn’t wholly understand, entranced by the wagging tail and the chubby butt underneath. Gid stretched, lifting his arms and the ferret stared at the bare, fuzzy gut of the fox, round and wobbling as he walked over to his overalls, entranced for the first time by the fact that Gideon was naked.

 

\- - - 

 

There was at least one upside to being late to Tundra Town; Travis wouldn’t have to wait out in the cold too long. To both his dismay and relief, Raymond’s car was waiting for him at the tram station and the ferret quickly scurried over, thumping his fist on the freezing passenger door. Travis peered inside, staring at the giant polar bear as he leaned over the passengers end of the car. Although the interior of the vehicle was almost as big as the apartment Travis lived in it hardly was able to contain the bulk of the bear in the drivers seat alone.

“Hey, sorry if I’m late.” Travis grunted as he hauled himself up into the seat, shooting the bear a forced smile. “Tram got crowded so I had to wait for the-”

“You serious about this?” The bear’s gruff voice queried, holding the door open. He paused, narrowing his eyes at the tiny mustelid that cowered from the cold. “I’m not letting you back out of this deal once this door closes. You’re either going to make something of yourself for once in your life or you can hop right out and keep being a nobody.”

Travis blinked, trembling all over as another chilling breeze buffeted him from the open door. To Raymond’s credit, he was offering something Travis never had been given before; a chance to back out. Of course, walking away would prove that he really was what he had feared. 

Scum. Not even good scum, just the kind that people with hopes and dreams that were still within their reach would step over and dismiss on a day to day basis.

Travis chewed his lip, squinting to keep the billowing snow out of his eyes. “Close the door, will ya? Freaking cold out there.”

The bear gave a satisfied huff and slammed the door shut. “Take off your clothes. I’ll stuff ‘em in the glove box for safekeeping.”

“What!” Travis exclaimed. “It’s freezing!”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll keep you warm.” Raymond said with an earthy chuckle.

Travis hesitated, just to see if the bear was serious.

“I’m not going to say please.” Raymond said, his voice burning with a thick growl.

With a reluctant frown the ferret lifted the rim of his shirt up over his head. He watched the bear’s face as he loosened his pants and pushed them down to his ankles. The bear stretched out his massive paw and opened the glove compartment, pinching the ferret-sized tank top and tossing it inside. He did the same with the mustelid’s pants and held out his palm again. “Undies too, bitch.”

Travis cast a concerned look at the car windows.

“They’re tinted. Besides, where you’re going no one will even see you.” Raymond’s smile curled into sneer as he cupped his crotch with his other hand, jostling the plump bulge. With no other choice Travis shoved his underwear off and shivered at being exposed in the frigid car interior. The polar bear pinched the tiny briefs between his thumb and forefinger and brought it up to his nose, lightly huffing. “Heh, you’re making the right choice here , kiddo. Come on, climb on over.”

Travis hesitated, cringing at the demand. His eyes widened as the bear’s hooded sweatshirt was tugged up and revealed the massive mound of blubber and fur that lay underneath. Like his first time courting the huge male, his fear was boiled away by a frothing lust at the sight of the hefty man’s bulk. Naked as he was, Travis felt small, insignificant, utterly powerless. It gave him an erotic thrill, he discovered, being in the presence of a bigger, stronger male animal. Briefly, memories of Gideon Grey waving Travis into the pond with him slipped into his mind, the pudgy curve of the fox’s red paunch and the innocent glee of seeing his best friend naked and sopping wet, pulling his ferret follower against him as they dried their fur off in the summer sun. 

Travis quickly swept those thoughts away angrily. Tightening his teeth in a toothy smirk, he crawled over the gap between the seat and hopped onto the bear’s wide lap. The deep hum from the burly chest above him must have been approval. Raymond’s paw worked over his bulge, unzipping his pants as he closed the glove box. Travis regained his balance only to fling himself into the plush gut of his new employer. His muzzle dragged along the doughy surface until he found the rim of the bear’s fuzzy navel. He took a deep breathe through his nostrils as he pressed his face into the polar bear’s warm middle, his paws squeezing handfuls of the larger mammal’s stomach and circling around the round stomach.

“Mmmm, finally cooperating with me, huh? Guess all I have to do is flash this fat belly and you’ll do just about anything for me.” Raymond said with a laugh.

Travis only nodded into the furry flab he buried himself against, panting as he kissed around the pit of the bear’s navel. His thin, long body pressed itself hard into the sagging fold of the drooping gut. Travis felt his cock stiffen as it rocked against the bear’s blubber. As the tip of his tongue flicked along the inner dip of the bear belly button, Travis glanced and saw Raymond’s firm, lustful gaze boring down on him. The small mustelid could feel Raymond prying his fly open, nudging his underwear down low enough to unearth his genitals.

A heavy paw descended on Travis’ back. It flattened him against the robust stomach. “Missed this, haven’t you, bitch?” The bear’s tone was harsh, something that Travis had grown used to while living with a randy Duke Weaselton. The ferret had become accustomed to offering his ass and mouth to whatever sadistic prick would throw money at him. He didn’t do it often, but when he did it always devolved into this; name calling, teasing, a jerk attitude that the asshole could get away with just because they knew Travis would take the full brunt of it for the cash. Yet, something was different this time. There wasn’t any money at stake here. Something bigger, something that could change the direction of the ferret’s life, was at stake.

The only clue he got on the bear’s true intentions was the tight curl of Raymond’s thick fingers tugging Travis’ legs and tail down the hill of that massive gut. “H-hey-” Travis began to protest, but the bear shoved his face back into the soft, warm fur of his belly with a hard pat. 

“Shh, no complaining. You’re working for me now, aren’t you?” With a laugh, the bear tucked the ferret’s wriggling legs between his thick thighs and guided the fuzzy noodle boy down his crotch. Travis realized he was being deposited in the bear’s groin. He felt the heat of that pit below and the fabric of Raymond’s extra large underwear. It would be a tight fit, but the lower he got the more certain Travis was that he would be snug as a bug in Raymond’s pants.

Laying back and enjoying it was difficult though. Usually Raymond would just lay back and let the ferret work over his dick or rub his feet, like some kind of lewd tiny masseuse. This was wholly different than anything he’d done. “Is this really necessary?” He hollered, trying to push himself up from the thick fur that swarmed around him. “Can’t we talk about the job?”

“There’ll be time for that later. Right now, all I want you to do for me right now is squirm.” The bear pushed the rest of his paw into his crotch, dragging Travis along for the ride. It was like being buried alive and the wide eyed uncertainty in the ferret’s eyes must have amused the bear in the dim light of his stretched waistband. With a sneer, Raymond let his underwear snap closed. Darkness engulfed the young ferret and for a moment he couldn’t help but wriggle in a panicky fashion. The hot stench of the fat balls laying across his bare torso stank up the tight space and he felt the bear cock throb as he heard the fly being zipped up, slowly. A muffled groan of satisfaction could barely be heard beyond the two layers of clothes Travis was trapped behind.

In his mind, he told himself this was just temporary. It was just Raymond being the same kind of jerk he always was. He’d have his fun and then help Travis get where he needed to be to take his turn in the family that ran Tundra Town. The best way to make that path smooth was to play along. He squirmed his muzzle up along the fat sheathe of the bear until he could nose over the emerging tip and began to flick out his tongue, moving his long body however he could to let the bear know how trapped he was in his toasty loins. It earned him a firm rub and the car suddenly revved to life, leaving the ferret to work.

 

\- - -

 

The lobby was an impressive sight, marble and rich adornments on every mirror and leisurely seat. It was just another signal to everyone that all of Mr. Big’s ventures, not just expensive suits or cuisine, were elaborate successes. It seemed to have everything for every species; size appropriate rooms, a timely buffet for guests to dine on, a sauna or the pool area for those who enjoyed splashing around, and a reception area for conventions, wedding receptions, and any sort of business meeting could be held in. Gideon Grey had spent the whole morning getting acquainted with the kitchen’s appliances and utensils, getting some practice baking some of the tasty treats he’d have to make tomorrow for the wedding reception. The hardest part so far was getting the tiny, delicate shapes of barns and carrots on the cookies and cupcakes that would fit in the center of his thumb, but he’d learned making mistakes was the only way someone could learn to improve.

Yet, all the while he had been plagued by last night. The fox’s mind refused to cooperate, returning to painful memories of his youth, all associated with his old ferret friend. He hadn’t heard from him since they went their separate ways after high school and he couldn’t help but kick himself in the butt worrying about what he could have done to help him. And dropping out of college? That seemed impossible. He’d always known Travis to have been the smarter of the two. He couldn’t bear the thought of simply ignoring this.

At the very least he had the hero of Zootopia here to give him some pointers at the very least.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go loosen him up for you?” Judy said, giving Gideon’s thick digits a squeeze. They had been talking in a corner of the lobby, sipping cups of old coffee quietly as they talked and plotted over what little details of Travis Blackfoot came to mind to the fox. Yet, convincing Judy to let Gideon help wasn’t the hard part. Getting the other fox on board after the abrupt and downright rude reception last night was the real challenge.

“No.” Gideon muttered, already feeling his voice tremble a bit. “I should be the one doing this. You go back to your room Judy.”

The rabbit sighed. “Just remember what I told you. Nick’s a hard nut to crack. You’re sugar sweet though, so just don’t let him get one up on you.”

Gideon Grey nodded and walked with an uncertain gait towards the hotel pool. The closer he came to Nick the more tense his muscles got.

Gideon stopped short on the edge of the hot tub. His eyes were already starting to get irritated from the chemicals that mixed in the steamy air, but what made him hesitate was the annoyed glance Nick Wilde gave him. He crouched down low enough to ask in a hushed voice. “You won’t twist my ear or nothing if I join ya, right?”

Nick shrugged, rolling his eyes. “It’s not like I own the hotel. Do what you want, carrot cake.”

“Ha, cute.” Gideon said.

“Aren’t I, though?” Nick said, his tone not yet managing to hide the tinge of annoyance in his voice.

Gideon gasped and winced once the water reached his chest, slowly letting his bulk settle in the steamy tub until he was able to rest his chin on the warm waters surface. “Didn’t think I’d need a swimsuit considering all the snow and all. Mr. Big wasn’t joking when he told me they’d have whatever I needed in the shop by the front desk.”

Nick decided to study the ceiling rather than look at Gideon. “In my experience, convenience usually comes at a cost.”

Gideon shrugged. “Shucks, I wouldn’t know. They just gave me what I asked for. Mr. Big is covering everything while I’m here. Feels like my birthday or something!”

“Did you want something? Me specifically, because as far as I know we don’t really have any reason to be talking right now.”

Gid frowned, rising up to seat himself on the opposite edge from Nick. “Sorry. I kind of wanted to, uh, thank you for helping Judy out and all.” He’d hoped he could avoid this sort of formality. Gideon never had a good way with words and Dr. Marlowe always told him to just speak from the heart when it came down to it. That way, he wouldn’t lose his temper as easily.

Nick’s ears flicked upwards and his expression tightened as though he was struggling about whether to make a snide comment or keep his trap shut. “You don’t need to thank me. It’s my job. We’re partners in the force, carrot cake.”

Gideon held up a paw, shaking his head. “Naw, I meant before that. With the whole night howlers thing and the whole city going crazy about us.” He didn’t stumble with his words this time, but kept a warm grin on his face was harder when he brought up that incident. “Us predators, I mean.”

“Ah,” Nick blew out a long breath that only bought him a few seconds of thought. “I’m honored and all by your profuse gratitude, but I’m still not following where you’re going with this.”

“Oh,” Gideon bit his lip, realizing he’d have to get a lot more specific to get Nick where he needed him. “When me and Judy were kids-”

“You’re not going to drop your whole life story on me, are you? If so, I should probably just get out of the tub.”

“No, you need to hear this.” Gideon pleaded, his heart hammering in his chest. “I was a real mean kid. I hurt Judy, clawed her face up real good and rubbed her face in the dirt, told her she wasn’t ever going to amount to nothing. Called her a dumb bunny and made sure she’d remember how bad a fox could be.”

Finally, Gideon had the other fox’s full attention. It was like he’d slapped Nick to wake him up and start paying attention. Nick’s eyes widened, first with confusion and then with outrage.

It didn’t deter Gid though. “I knew it stuck with her. She might not have thought about it, but she was wary about foxes after that. Heck, maybe all predators from the way I had treated her. Somehow, you helped her get through that by being her friend and I can’t tell you how grateful I am that another fox was able to do that. She’d hate me now otherwise, I’m sure.”

Nick was quiet, struggling with what to say or do. “Why do you care if she likes you or hates you? She talks about you like you’re an old friend. It should be obvious.”

“Well, she might not have forgiven me at all when I apologized to her when she came back after quitting. I can’t sleep sometimes just from thinking how things might have turned out if you weren’t there.”

Nick’s shoulders sank as he let out a long sigh. He chewed over his thoughts for a minute, the warm water gently bubbling between the two foxes. “To be honest, I think you’re the one who needs thanking. The only reason Judy ever came back to make things right in the city was because you pointed out the night howlers.”

Gideon’s ears flipped to the ceiling. “I did?”

Nick grinned. “Oh yeah, Carrot Cake, you and that southern simplicity came out in the end. On top of that, if you never turned over a new leaf I bet you’d never would have been there at all. Then where would we be?”

“I’d rather not think about it to be honest.” Gideon said, laughing uneasily.

“Feel better?” Nick said, offering a sly upturn of his lips to the fatter fox.

“A ton! Do you mind if I ask you a question though?” Gid’s muzzle tighten in a nervous smile of his own.

Nick shrugged complacently.

“Is Travis in some trouble, do ya think?”

The slim fox’s eyes lidded slightly as he let out a hard sigh. “I know he’s an old buddy from your childhood and everything, but people change and unlike you they don’t decide to be a better person in the end. Officially, no one’s pegged him for anything other than a really lame misdemeanor that he committed when he was in high school.”

“Yeah, that was my fault. Like I said, I was a mean kid. Only reason he got caught too was because I egged him on.” Gideon said with a saddened groan.

“Hey, we all do stupid things and we still love each other for it. Besides, stealing a tractor and driving it through a bunny fair sounds hilarious.”

Gideon felt old excuses float up into his mouth again. “Heck, I didn’t think it’d be hard to drive the thing! Making it stop was the tough part!”

Seeing Nick laugh was a relief. Yet, it didn’t take long before his guts were twisting with worry as the fox cop dropped the humor. “Luckily, you’re talking to a guy who has access to all kinds of word to mouth on the streets.” Nick bragged, trying to lighten the blow of where this conversation was about to go. “Your ferret friend has a new buddy pulling favors for him. My guess is he didn’t take dropping out of college all too well and got mixed up with some dumb streetwise wannabe crime lords. Only now, he’s getting swirled in with the real thing. Not dumb hijinks. Bad, legitimate criminal activity.” Nick’s expression hardened and he gave an uneasy glance around the room.

“So, you thinking that warrant went and vanished because some hot shot is pulling strings? Is that why you and Judy are really here?”

“Oh yeah, carrot cake. If this hot shot is big enough to mess with the ZPD’s system, he’s going to have tiny Travis help him out in a high class job. Could be robbery, could be murder, could be anything. It’ll be illegal, that much is for certain. In my experience, high end crime that start with a shady occurrence like hacking into a government database like to start in Tundra Town. With the biggest crime lord in town throwing a big party, there’s no doubt in mine or Judy’s head there’s going to be a connection. Only thing we have to .”

Gideon’s ears flattened and he fiddled with his thick fingers under the bubbling foam. He couldn’t imagine Travis would have been capable of any of those things. “What do I do then? We gotta find him before he does any of that junk. He’s not a bad guy, Nick, h-h-honest. Just helpless and backed into a corner.”

Nick Wilde winced, weighing his options. “You got Mr. Big’s trust, right?”

“I think so. He seems like a nice guy.”

“Do you think he’d be willing to do you a favor?”

 

\- - - 

 

To a ferret, the hotel room that Raymond had gotten was a mansion compared to the small apartment that he had lived in with Duke. Travis blinked and sneezed, the bear’s earthy musk the only thing he could smell. He was laying in Raymond’s wide underwear on the floor and staring up at the crotch he had been stuffed against. The view was dominated by the white, fluffy thighs and the sagging gut. The brute had done away with his clothes and now that he was finally with the ferret he could have his fill.

Travis crawled out of the musky briefs, leaning against Raymond’s as he caught his breath. “Nice room. We sharing it?”

“Yup.” Raymond said with a growl as he crouched down and plucked Travis off the floor. The ferret let out a grunt as the floor sped away from him. He was brought to the bear’s meaty chest, cradled as he plopped his fat rump on the enormous bed. The room was colder than the small mammal would have liked, but huddled against the soft, conditioned fur of this huge male and being cupped into the huge palm kept the worst of the chill away from him.

“You’re real cute, you know that?” The bear said, gently petting a large finger down the ferret’s neck and back. Travis at first felt flattered by this gentler side Raymond was showing, but he already had heard these sorts of things told to him before. Being told that he was sweet or adorable no longer did anything for him. He knew the men he slept with didn’t really mean it. After they blew their load he’d be nothing more than a burden that they had no obligation to look after. It was all lies or manipulation to make him all the more malleable to their tastes.

Yet, this time it might be different. He might not merely be a toy for the huge ursine’s pleasure. If all went well he’d be a sort of business partner perhaps? Peeking through those huge claws, Travis could see the hotel room was decked out with lavish luxury. A huge refrigerator and a full kitchen was in the entrance and the bed alone was the largest, softest mattress he’d ever seen. A decanter of wine was set aside on the nearby dining table. If he could live a life like this and never once worry about money or be reminded of his own failures, Travis would push through this moment just to get a chance at it.

So Travis faked it, like he was used to. The ferret pulled his legs up into the warm palm and shoved his cheek into the bear’s chest, letting out an exaggerated gasp and stretching a prize winning smile. Not all of this was acted out. The bear knew words and motions that could make the ferret melt in his claws as easily as an ice cube. It didn’t make it any easier to push out the fact that a successful future was riding on Raymond’s erection.

The polar bear’s muzzle leaned down and Travis craned his neck up to meet it. The thick, black lips of the bear puckered lazily, engulfing the mustelid’s face. The lower jaw worked gently, mouthing the fat lower lip to deepen the kiss with the emergence of the thick, slick tongue. Raymond probed the tip at Travis mouth and he opened them, ready to receive the whole drooling length of his benefactor. To Raymond’s credit, it wasn’t easy having sex with a guy this small. He usually let the ferret work at his own pace, but the drive to act out his dominance in a more demanding fashion often came out in the most intimate ways. 

Tongue fucking the smaller male’s throat was one of these cases. Travis moaned against the wet organ wriggling past his lips and down the back of his throat. He held his breath, shutting his eyes to help focus on staving off the urge to gag at the slimy invader. The tongue receded, dipping back into the bear’s mouth to collect more drool, then surged forward in a single motion. Travis would have struggled, but he found the massive fingers clamping around his tiny, thin frame, pinning his limbs and holding him against the beefy chest of the older mammal.

“Mhmm.” A simple groan was all Travis could muster up in response to the suffocating kiss. He nursed over the wet, saliva soaked tongue noisily to urge the bear on to finish up. His lungs began to strain and he was beginning to sputter and choke as the bear closed his big lips over Travis’ muzzle, pushing and retracting the squirming tongue back and forth. It summoned forth desperate grunts from the ferret as he clutched at the fur of Raymond’s chest, his eyes gazing up at the bear and pleading with a whine and a furious set of blinking.

Finally, he felt it withdraw. It almost seemed as though it snaked its way out of half of his body from how much of an impression it left in its wake. Drool caked the fur on the ferret’s neck, face and chest. He gasped as he finally felt his mouth free of the bear’s affection. In the midst of the coughing and sputtering that quickly erupted from Travis, he could do nothing but let the bear hold him as he recovered, running the fat tongue over his brow and ears.

“You did better that time.” Raymond said with a laugh. “Didn’t bite me neither.”

Travis gasped for breath. “Did you taste what I ate for breakfast, jeez that thing went deep.” He could could still feel the excess drool running down his throat and he wasn’t sure whose it was.

“Come finish me in the shower. We’ll chat about the job I got in store for you.” Whatever Raymond said happened it seemed and Travis was cradled in the nook of the huge ursine’s white arm as he was brought into the gigantic bathroom. Whatever this room must have cost didn’t seem to faze Raymond, but the ferret’s eyes were wide with amazement, the simple amenity of a toilet and a shower alone was astounding. He’d had to use the community showers or a public restroom at a coffee shop or fast food joint most of the time.

The shower head thundered briefly as steamy water sprayed out onto the bear’s wide frame, he set Travis down between his huge feet, the water dripping down the sloping gut that loomed above Travis. He stared, feeling a thrill at this immense difference of size between the two mammals. He rinsed out his tail, shaking his ears as he and the bear drenched themselves.

“You’re gonna be a waiter at the wedding reception Mr. Big is throwing for his nephew. All you’ll be doing is smiling and handing out tiny plates with snacks on them. Only trick is,” The bear squeezed out a huge pawful of shampoo and began working it into his thick fur. “You have to make sure Mr. Big gets a special plate of cannoli. It’s his favorite dish and it’s guaranteed to help you get a word in with him. That’s the only way you’re going to grab his attention.”

“What the fuck is a cannoli?” Travis let some excess suds drip into his fur, vigorously rubbing it over his thin limbs.

“Don’t worry, I’m going to have the plate be a different color than the rest so you’ll know which one to give the old bastard. You’re going to be looking for a blue, ceramic dish. Got it?”

“Yeah, but why-”

“It’s nothing you got to worry about. You’re just a waiter boy for the rest of the reception and all you got to do is walk the dumb thing over to his table and give it to him. Make a pitch on why you’re a fit for the family and boom! This is a no brainer job, kid. Considering what you’re getting out of it, you ought to be thrilled.”

Travis frowned, glancing up at the bear as he stood underneath the waterfall his flabby belly made. “I’m going to get a real job after this, right? Something in the family?” 

“It’s a business first and foremost, don’t kid yourself about any romantics you might have heard. Sure, you’ll have a job down here in the Tundra. Besides, I’ll always want something to keep my balls warm at night.” He sent a cocky sneer down to the ferret and laughed again, forcing the mustelid’s ears to droop. “Speaking of, give em a wash while you’re down there?”

“Um, sure.” Travis muttered turning around to cup the bear’s heavy sack. As his dainty fingers ran over the two fat orbs he felt a paw on the back of his head that pushed him into the wet, musky groin.

“I’m going to take care of you, kid. Just do what I tell you and don’t worry about a thing.” Raymond reassured him, the tips of his trimmed claws scratching the back of the ferret’s ears.

Travis shut his eyes, trying with all his might to believe that as he gave the plump sack a firm lick, lapping over his benefactors balls with diligence.

 

\- - - 

 

“Lets make one thing clear. No matter what happens next, we all agree that we’ll watch each others backs.” Nick said quietly. He glanced around the dining room of the hotel, wary about the polar bears that stood at the doors leading in and out of the large room.

“Nick, chill out. Mr. Big is going to have a granddaughter named after me. I doubt he’s going to be icing any of us, especially on his nephew’s wedding.”

“Ah ah, Carrots; wedding night. He’ll be very punctual about that detail.”

“What’s icing?” Gideon whispered, frowning at the special hiss that the two police officers gave the word.

“Nothing to worry about.” She said, trying to reassure the baker. “Nick’s just trying to scare you. As long as we handle this professionally everything will be fine.” Judy said, casting a sharp glare at the slim fox.

“I’m just being honest to carrot cake here. I think he deserves to know what kind of employer Mr. Big is. Besides, weren’t you the one who told me that we’re not on duty?”

“How else are we supposed to get to the bottom of this? You think we can waltz into Tundra Town in uniform and gather information on why some loser’s warrant got hacked out of our system? Police can’t operate out in the open here if they want to catch real bad guys, Carrots.”

“We were catching real bad guys, Nick.”

“Catching shoplifters isn’t the same as-”

“HEY MR. BIG!” Gideon shouted, standing up from his seat and furiously waving his arm in the arm. The whole room was suddenly silenced at the rotund fox’s yell and everyone began to look around with nervous expressions until they eventually settled on the enormous bear stomping through the double doors that led out to the hotel lobby. Gideon kept waving until Nick reached over and gave the country fox’s tail a yank, pulling him back down to his seat.

Koslav hovered over the table briefly before he removed one paw from his flat palm and set the old shrew down onto the table cloth. Mr. Big returned Gideon’s greeting as best he could; he smiled. “Mr. Grey, I’m overjoyed to see someone so eager to see me enter a room for once.”

“Now that you’re here it means we can order!” Gid said ecstatically, turning the menu over to the small mammal.

Mr. Big turned away from the large menu, shaking his head. “Koslav knows what I want.” The shrew said, waving a hand. The polar bear pulled a tiny table from his pocket, laying what Gideon had mistaken for a handkerchief over the small flat surface and turned to disappear into the kitchen. Two polar bears stayed behind, flanking either side of Mr. Big’s end of the table.

“Well, then I guess we can order.” Nick said, looking his menu over, but barely had more than a second glance before it was snatched up from his paws by one of the bodyguards.

“Koslav knows what you want, Nicky.”

The fox’s eyes lifted and stared at the small, yet powerful, shrew. “I’m surprised you’d remember something like that.”

“As ghastly as your scam was, we did have good times together in my household. It’s no matter. You requested lunch with me, Mr. Grey? I hope it’s not to report a problem about your kitchen or the room I’ve provided for you.”

Gideon squirmed a little in his seat. “To be frank, I kind of need a favor from ya.”

The shrew’s bushy eyebrows lifted gently.

Gideon cleared his throat before continuing. “I want know if you could find a friend of mine. I figure he’s about to wiggle himself into some trouble and I figured you’d be the right guy to talk to.”

Mr. Big’s eyebrows sank and he gestured to Nick and Judy. “You have two officers of the law who have quite the reputation in locating missing individuals. I don’t see why this is to be my responsibility. Especially,” His tone became firmer. “When I have enough to do with my nephew’s wedding in less than a day.”

“He understands that,” Judy interjected. “But this could be important, Mr. Big.”

“No more words.” The shrew held up his paw and paused long enough to compose himself. “I came down to enjoy a savory lunch with what I hoped would be a new business partner and my grandson’s godmother. This was to be a happy time. Now, you seek to burden me with a job that the ZPD refuses to do?”

“Sir, we really need your cooperation-” Judy said again, and this time the shrew made a gesture to one of his bear’s. The hulking creature stepped forward, standing between the rabbit and his boss. 

“This is not a question I gave to you, Miss Judy. Do not interrupt again.” He let out a sigh and regarded the flustered fox at the end of the table. “Mr. Grey, I demand a reason to grant your request. Else, we shall continue our lunch in peace.”

“Well, sir,” Gideon said, his voice caught in his throat. He fidgeted in his seat as he spoke. “I think my friend is trying to work for some bad folks and I want you to stop him from doing something he’ll regret.” All of this seemed out of his league. Gideon couldn’t believe what he was doing. All he was ever good at was baking cookies and handing out pies.

“Hm. And what makes you think I have any sway in this matter.”

“Because he’s trying to work for you.” Nick said suddenly, to Gideon’s relief.

The shrew turned slowly to face the fox and chewed over his words carefully. “I find that highly unlikely, Nicky.”

“Oh, I’d say it’s very likely. I’m surprised your first reaction is to doubt our fine baker here.” Nick planted his elbows on the table and grinned wide as he set his chin on his fists. “Good news is, if his story is true than you already know what’s going to happen next. Seems familiar, doesn’t it? Low time crime kid, trying to make his way out into the world with nothing but his wits and whiles. Thinks he’s ready for the big leagues and weasels his way into the real deal. Then, few months later he’s scamming the people who taught him everything he knows, gets booted back onto the street, and becomes so jaded at his failure that he becomes content selling re-purposed popsicles on the street corner.” Nick’s voice trimmed off with a nostalgic sigh. “You can’t pretend that you’re a soft sugar-flake of a businessman. Face it, Mr. Big. You have another Wilde case on your hands. Best to nip it in the bud ahead of time.”

In the face of this, Mr. Big didn’t flinch. He listened, not moving nor interrupting. With a tired grunt he slumped down into his chair. “Getting old makes you want to do the right thing too often.” He spread out a tiny napkin over his knee and turned his head back to Gideon. “What’s your friend’s name?”

“Travis Blackfoot, Mr. Big. He’s a ferret, about my age and real wiry sort of guy.”

“I’ll check my sources. See where he’s worming his way in.”

“Thankya, sir.” 

“But in return,” Mr. Big said, waving a finger at the chubby fox. “I want a sample of each dish you’ll be serving for my nephew by tonight. I expect perfection and I’ll know what it tastes like.”

Gideon nodded quickly. “I’ll make sure of that sir!”

“Excellent.” The shrew smiled, genuinely, and a moment later a wide platter was brought out. Gideon gaped; he hadn’t seen food like this except in the movies.

The rest of their lunch passed without incident, but Gideon quickly excused himself. With this new task he’d need a head start to ensure the sweets came out just perfectly for his employer. Gideon Grey felt relieved, but he wished he might have been able to talk to Travis instead of relying on an apparent mob boss. He wondered what had changed Travis so much to make the ferret decide a life in the crime industry was more desirable than anything. He was worried this might plague him for the rest of his evening.

Thankfully, the elevator ride to the third floor wasn’t a long one and all he’d need to do was toss on the goofy looking attire that a proper pastry chef wore and he’d head to work.

The sound of the ice machine in the long hallway thundered next to the door to his room. He glanced over, just out of curiosity and the fox’s eyes widened as he saw a ferret clutching an empty bucket to his chest. It was almost as large as he was and as the ice piled up the mustelid’s arms began to shake and his knees began to buckle. Quick as a whistle, Gideon rushed over and crouched down to help steady it for the small mammal, laughing a bit as he did. 

“Whoa, easy there. Don’t overload yourself.” Gideon chuckled.

“Hey, yo, back off! I got it-” 

The ferret whirled, trying to back away from the fox before he froze in place. He stared up at Gideon, surprised, clutching the full bucket of ice tighter to his tin chest. “Gid?”

Gideon blinked, confused, but then he started to notice the similarities. The black fuzz that ran over the eyes and the thin, wiry limbs along with the little darker fur covering his forearms and paws like little black gloves. “Oh. Hey, uh, Travis.” He mumbled, taking a step back. They stared at one another, both uncertain about what to say and what to do.


	3. Growing out of the Present - third chapter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Travis begins to question his agreement with Raymond after spending an afternoon catching up with old childhood friend Gideon Grey.

The Grey’s house was small, but usually it could be split into two sections whenever Travis came over; Gid’s room and everything. Sure, they’d get snacks from the kitchen sometimes, but if they weren’t playing outside they were taking turns with whatever video game that had their attention.

“Why aren’t you going to talk to the town crier? That’s where all the main quests are.” Travis asked, though it was more of a demand from how passively Gideon was playing.

Gideon gritted his teeth, barking over his shoulder. “Not yet dummy. I got money to spend.”

“But you just learned that the enemy army is on the way and the town crier knows when their is going to arrive.”

“That’s why I’m getting new equipment!”

“Well, if you’re gonna waste time doing that can I at least finish some of Mrs. Hopper’s math homework? We have to have it done by Friday and there’s a quiz tomorrow.”

“Stop telling me what I already know, Travis!” Gideon barked as he whirled over to the ferret sitting on his bed. “I’m not stupid! You don’t have to keep repeating yourself!” He stared angrily at his friend then turned back to the game with a huff. “Can you get me a soda? You’re just gonna get bored watching me buying junk anyway. Least I won’t have you babying me.” 

For a moment Travis gaped at his best friend, almost unsure why he had gone from mumbling to shouting at the ferret. When he thought about it, he came to the conclusion that he just simply talked too much. Probably be best just to do what Gid said and wait until it was too late in the day for him to stay over. He wondered if they should try playing at his house more often. He wouldn’t have to lug over his game console at the very least. Hardly either of the ferret’s parents were around and he doubted they’d care if he snuck the fox over. The ferret rolled off the bed and slinked quietly out of Gideon’s room, trying not to distract the fox.

No one was inside the Grey household save for him and Gid. He heard some kid’s parents were incredibly paranoid about where there kids were and who they were friends with. Travis was glad that both boys seemed free to play with each other whenever they felt like it; Travis because his parents were too busy to say otherwise and Gid-well, all he knew was that he didn’t meet Gideon’s mother or grandpa very often.

Travis closed the door behind him. It was less than a few steps to the kitchen. The Grey’s single story home was small and Travis had a lot of ease getting around since fox’s were not as large as his own species. He imagined it’d be a struggle having an elephant as a best friend.

Travis had been thinking about elephants a lot lately. The magazine he had gotten from Gideon had a whole page devoted to one in particular. Discovering that page in particular had been eye opening in more ways than one. The cold air of the fridge washed over him and he couldn’t help but take a moment to let himself daydream a bit. The page had flopped out and folded down into a full spread of the naked pachyderm bulk, the trunk taunting the reader in an erotic fashion. It had been weeks since he had gotten the obviously gay magazine that had been overlooked in the porn stack that the young fox had absconded with. Gideon had probably forgotten all about it, but Travis was incised by the exposure to this clearly adult world he’d not yet been divulged in, driven to explore this new knowledge that had rocked him to his core.

Travis Blackfoot was gay. He had uttered it to himself one night, gazing at the large spread of the chubby elephant, engrossed in the revelation, but so terrified of that truth that he could only whisper it as he pushed himself into a fateful orgasm.

The ferret glanced down the hallway and saw three doors. One was a bathroom, but the other two-

Travis steered himself away from the kitchen and began to move as silent as a mouse, which he knew ferrets could do. How else did they catch them back when everyone was savage? It was still there, rooted in his genetics. He could find more of those magazines without getting caught, he told himself. Besides, Gideon would be distracted by the game. He would likely assume his friend had plopped down to read or so homework, something he often admonished Travis over. The point being that Gideon Grey wouldn’t be none the wiser if Travis went digging for more of the Grey elder’s porn stash.

It didn’t make the ferret’s heart calm down any less, despite these quick observations. The dry, stained carpet was rough underfoot and Travis could not help but look behind him in a terrified manner after every few inches or so of progress. One door was already partially open. Travis peeked his muzzle inside and was certain this wasn’t the space for an old fox. He saw clean, pink and white sheet on the bed, the only part of the house that looked like it was in order. Two outfits were laid out on the bed and Travis could see one of the was a waitress outfit for the Bunny Burrows Crab Shack and the other for a ice cream parlor he always saw, but never went inside. He stared a moment longer, certain he was beginning to understand the gaps between his family and Gideon’s and closed the door. He snuck across to the other bedroom and opened it.

The stink of cigarettes and old, dirty laundry wafted out of the cracked door. Travis was certain this was the foxhole of someone from an older generation. To his relief, it was empty and without missing a beat, Travis weaved himself in, dragging his backpack behind him. He’d rifle through, grab a few gay zines that looked good, and get back to Gideon with the soda.

Where to find the stash, however, was his current quandary. Feeling like a perverted detective, Travis clipped his flashlight off of his key chain and waved the beam around.

Under the bed? The ferret poked his head under and only saw some forgotten jeans and some weird boxes that looked like some old board game. He scurried around the dark room, peering under and behind the dresser, wrinkling his nose at the musty smell that clung to the air. He saw the closet, his mouth twisting into an ironic grin.

“If it’d be anywhere, it’d be in the closet,” Travis mumbled. He pushed one of the closet doors open. Hangers had fallen off and some old suits and coats swayed over the tops of several cardboard boxes, all with lids with things written out in sharp, black marker. Some turned out to be honest. Old, folded clothes, harmless paperback books. Travis lifted the lid of one particular heavy box and was met with several spines of magazines. Thrilled, Travis yanked some free and he could tell immediately what kind of people what raunchy cover appealed to. More so, what type of naked promises lay between the pages. He began to wonder how many he should take, whether he should scan through a few of the gay ones and see if there was any particular one that appealed to him. Like Gideon had said, Grandpa Grey had so many that he probably wouldn’t take note that a few were missing.

Travis was so engrossed in this task he didn’t hear the front door open.

Bells finally went off in his head when he heard heavy footsteps just outside the door. The ferret fumbled with the flashlight, flicking it off, and with a stifled yelp he slid into the closet to hide as the door opened. Travis peered out from over the box and shuddered at the sight of Gideon’s grandfather. He didn’t have to think about how much trouble he’d be in if he was caught. He’d probably get Gid in trouble too.

The old fox ditched his coat. Then his shirt. His belt bounced onto the floor and before Travis knew it he was staring at the fatty curves and grey-red fuzz that sagged over the old fox’s body. Even in the dark, Travis could see the finer details of the older man’s rotund shape.

The ferret felt as though he was trapped in the dragon’s lair with no escape in sight. And for some reason he couldn’t do anything but hold his breath and stare.

Gideon’s upper progeny was portly to say the least, wearing disheveled patches of fur along with a thick overgrowth of fuzz covered his chin and neck. His bulk wobbled as he plopped down on the edge of the bed and began to mumble to himself. Travis couldn’t make out the words, only the slight snarl that followed them and the hand that dipped under the wide belly that the old beast lugged around. The young ferret’s eyes widened as the paw slipped past the waistband of the fox’s briefs. He began to rub harshly at his crotch. His other hand went to to the task of groping at his plump male breasts, wide and flabby. It dipped lower and ran along the broad stomach that was now on display. The sight of all this made Travis’ crotch grow tight. To his dismay and confusion he was getting an erection. A hard one. Combined with the tight grip of fear in his chest it was easily the most aroused and terrified the ferret had ever been.

“Been waiting for this shit all day. Fuckers think their gonna make me take a double shift? Naw. Fuck that.” Grandpa Grey muttered as he fished out his cock and balls. Travis narrowed his eyes in order to make out the fat length gripped in the fox’s fist as he began to furiously masturbate. Was this what he did every time he came back home from the factory? Seclude himself in his room and jerk himself off? He didn’t even close the door properly.

The ferret was lucky to have crawled behind the boxes when he did. Gid’s grandpa hopped off the bed and stomped over to the closet. Travis curled his long body together, balling up between the wedged up boxes like the intruder he was as Grandpa Grey crouched down and began to rifle through the stack of magazines. Travis was convinced he’d feel the large digits dig into his fur and pull him out from space between the boxes at any moment. His lungs stopped getting air, he couldn’t breathe, and his heart began to hammer his ribs relentlessly as he waited to inevitably be snatched up. 

He could hear Grandpa Grey flip through a crinkled magazine and released a long groan, rippling with lust. “Ahhhh, fuck yeah boy. You want a turn with daddy?” He said in a husky growl.

Travis had to clench his teeth not to cry out. He prayed and pleaded in his head, trying to sink into the floor before-

“What the fuck?” The old Grey dropped the magazine and grabbed something off the floor. Travis heard the loud, slow dragging of a zipper. He glanced up and realized, to his horror, that it was his backpack that he’d abandoned in his haste to hide himself in Gid’s grandfather’s grasp.

Then he saw the old man’s gaze fall on Travis himself.

For a long moment, the fox merely stared at the curled up ball that huddled between his porn box and his collection of paperbacks.

Finally, he barked sharply. “What are you doing in here?”

Travis only seemed to tighten his body around himself tighter. His cheat heaved with each breath.

Rather than wait for an answer, the fox pulled out the magazine Travis had poured over night after night from the bag. He sighed, flipping the cover over to show Travis. “Ohhhh, you looking for these? You a pervy thief? Shoulda expected Gid to make some friends with some runt with no manners.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry-” Travis hissed. He was cornered, he didn’t think he’d be caught.

“Got the hots for men? Little thing like you?” He began to flip page after page of the magazine and let out a bark of laughter as a page began to fold out. He whistled, turning the magazine over to show Travis the immense elephant spread he’d masturbated to nearly every evening. “Like ‘em big, don’tcha hun?”

Travis was speechless. All his secrets were being pulled out like stitches and he felt his ears burn with embarrassment.

“Come on, get on outta there. I ain’t gonna bite your head off.”

What choice did he have? Travis tried to wriggle himself free and strained. He’d wedged himself so deep that he got himself stuck. Grandpa Grey wrapped his hands around the ferret’s shoulders and lifted in him up in one deft tug by the back of his shirt, exposing his belly as he was held aloft.

“Whoa, look out! Live ammo here!” The older male chuckled, noting the pointed erection in Travis’ pants. “You like the show, kiddo?”

Travis just stared. He couldn’t believe this was happening. His mouth was dry and all he could offer was to stare in dismay at the floor.

“Guess it speaks for itself.” The old fox’s gaze dipped down to the lithe, long belly that was open before him then back to the stiff cock tenting the ferret’s shorts. Travis saw the look in the magazine several times. He was being admired, or perhaps targeted for all kinds of dirty thoughts. He shuddered as Grandpa Grey licked his lips and brought his crotch up to his muzzle. His nostrils began to flare and breathe in the young ferret’s scent. 

Travis began to squirm, blurting out, “Could you let me go, sir? I’m awful sorry. I won’t do it again.”

The old fox hesitated. He tilted his head, grin spread wide. “You sure you want to leave so soon? Ain’t you itching to make some of those fantasies of yours come true. Paper ain’t like the real thing.”

Travis swallowed hard. Was this going to be the price of his incompetence? Worse, it was probably punishment for sticking his nose where it didn’t belong. The thought of being toyed with and handled so roughly by an animal as big and old as Gideon’s grandpa might have made him rock hard alone at night but now that the real thing was here in front of him all he could feel was terror pumping along through his limbs with every thundering heart beat.

The geezer’s expression slowly went slack. He sighed and gave Travis a disappointed tsk. “You ain’t got anything to say? Nothing”

Travis clenched his eyes shut. What could he do? What was the protocol here? A part of him obviously wanted to go further, to let his best friend’s grandfather have his way. But maybe he might not get in as much trouble if he placated Gid’s grandfather in this manner. He should have just gotten Gid’s drink, confined himself to being ignored and just kept himself meek and stupid.

His thoughts suddenly were forced back to the present as the old fox flipped the ferret around and lowered him to the floor. He loomed over Travis, panting as he leaned him over the cardboard box where his first real sexual fantasy had emerged.

“I ain’t warning you again. You’re gonna learn to either say yes or you learn to say no. Ain’t no way you get to live happy when you’re stuck between wanting to let an old fat fuck take your virginity and...well, whatever else is outside this room.” As he spoke, the warm bare fuzz of Grandpa Grey’s belly came to rest against the ferret’s back, sagging atop Travis’ rump as a pair of hands began to sink and slide his shorts down, squeezing the lithe fuzzy butt cheeks of the young ferret.

Somehow that cupping palm over his ass sparked Travis to speak out. “Don’t!” He reached back and yanked his shorts back up again, shivering at the warm paw still caressing one his butt cheeks underneath. He looked over his shoulder at the old fox. “I want to, but I don’t want my first to be,” He hesitated, unable to find find what he wanted to say. “I want it with-not you. Not as my first. It’s real scary, sir.” He had the words stuck in his throat. He didn’t know how to say it, only that he didn’t want to waste his first time like this.

Weird emotions were writhing their way around Travis as he tried to stand up. Guilt for trying to steal from his best friend’s grandfather. Ashamed of having his secret attraction for other males be discovered so harshly. Unbridled want to rip off his clothes and leap into whatever lusty intentions Grandpa Grey had in store for him. Yet, he knew better.

Most of all, he wanted to see Gideon.

“Alright, I see how it is. Smarter than you look.” Gideon’s grandfather stood up, whipped his dirty underwear back up his wide hips. “You learned something at least.”

Travis tilted his head, unsure what the fox meant.

He rolled his eyes and scratched his fuzzy stomach. “Sex is a hell of a thing. It’ll drive some people wild and that’s half the fun of it. Make sure you’re just as wild for them or you’re going to get hurt. They need you to tell them though. If you don’t want to do it then you throw every excuse you can including ‘I don’t want to’. If none of that works,” He shrugged and reached into his mouth. To Travis’ disgust he pulled out his fanged dentures and struggled to coherently say. “Guess that’s why we got these, right?”

“That’s so gross!” The ferret exclaimed, snatching his backpack.

“Yeah, yeah. I’ve heard it all before. Get yer tail outta here.” With a sharp kick to the ferret’s rear. 

Travis hobbled out of the room. He shook his head, trying to come down from the mix of emotions that he had been swept up in. He waited a moment, feeling certain he wanted at least one last look at the heavy set figure that almost fucked his brains out.

The door was still open. Travis peeked through the open crack and his eyes widened like the lens of a camera, catching every detail.

The bed creaked as the old fox fell back onto it. Travis heard telltale sound of the Grey elder jacking his erection and his low murmurs of various lewd grumbles. Travis stared, his eyes roaming along the bulk of Grandpa Grey laying belly up on the bed, his legs kicking and twitching with his fist as it pumped rapidly on his member. The fox began to pant loudly as his cock began to spurt high up into the air. The bed protested, the springs struggling with the jerky movements of its pudgy owner, but just as fast as the horny old fox had started he was already done. His hilly paunch heaved up and down, exhausted by the brief and furious orgasm.

Travis watched the long line of the hallway light run over the old fox’s flabby gut as he painted it with white spurts from those fat balls that tensed between his legs. Suddenly, Travis realized what he needed to do next. That intense yearning inside his loins and inside his lust addled skull wanted to slink in and clamber up onto that flabby hill and lap at those white streaks of fox cum and settle onto one of the thick nips Grandpa Grey sported.

He knew he’d made his decision though. More so, he knew who he wanted more than the old fox. Travis grabbed a soda from the refrigerator and went back to Gideon’s room. 

The young fox gave a glance towards the ferret, hammering on the buttons of his controller. “Where the heck were ya? The army attacked and the whole place is on fire now! I couldn’t buy anything!” 

Travis took a brief glance on the television screen. Indeed, the buildings were on fire, the music was as wildly blaring and the animals on the screen looked as terrified had Travis had felt.

Gideon gave Travis an angry look. “What? You gonna start lecturing me again?”

Somehow, Travis had forgotten what Gid was like most days. He was angry, mean, and it was directed at Travis more and more the worse Gideon seemed to do in school. “Naw.” He said, sitting down beside the young fox and pointed to the screen. “I think you can break into that house. Probably some health potions inside.” Gid was good at tackling problems head on. He needed someone to help him see the turns that could help him in the long run.

 

\- - -

 

For once, things might turn out alright, Travis thought. He knew every button he could push on Raymond to make him blow his load and after they’d washed the bear’s cum off of their fur he had told the ferret to stay in the room until tomorrow’s big day. Travis could use the hotel room’s amenities to his liking, but what he wanted more than anything now that the room had the heat blasting, ironically, was some ice. He wanted to as experience as much of this luxury as he could before he’d be shoved into whatever place the polar bear wanted once he got back from whatever errand he had to run. The ferret only hoped whatever job he landed wasn’t as busy as Raymond’s. Instinctively, Travis lingered on all the horrific ways he could screw up on the simple act of bringing a mob boss his stupid cannoli.

The last thing he would have expected was Gideon Grey to catch him before he once again made a mess of things.

The ice bucket was heavy and he’d nearly tipped forward and sent the whole thing spilling across the third floor hallway before the fox’s familiar thick arms slipped under the bottom of the bucket and braced against the ferret’s scrawny arms. They both nearly dropped it again as they stared at one another, both in clear disbelief. Then, Gideon broke out into an uncharacteristically huge smile.

“Travis! Well, flip me sunny-side up, it really is you!”

Travis was still speechless. He tried to hug the ice bucket closer to him out of reflex, but the fox was reluctant to let go. Was this good? Was this bad? Should he be happy? Was it better to run away?

Cracking a fake grin, Travis tugged the full bucket towards his chest. Gideon’s grip held. “Gid,” He grunted and swallowed hard. “Uh, Gideon. Hiya!”

The fox was older now. Taller. Fatter. Cleaner cut, too. The token mop of hair was a given that this was Gideon Grey, in the fuzz. How much of this was going to be genuine? Was he actually happy to see the ferret after all this time or was this just something adults had to do when they see someone from their childhood?

“You got that sucker, Travis? Here let me help you!” Gideon Grey said, continuing to insist despite the tight mustelid claws that still clutched onto the sides of the plastic underside of the bucket.

“You don’t have to do that.” Travis mumbled. He stared at the clothes that hugged Gideon’s pudgy frame; the bright pink color of the fabric, not marred or faded but new, too rich a simple-minded bully from Bunny Burrows. Not only that, but he wasn’t dressed in a uniform, as though he might be working as a bell boy or room service. He must have been a guest at the hotel which might have meant, somehow, Gideon had been able to succeed at something that Travis couldn’t. This was a place for the rich and the successful to indulge in their lavish lifestyles. At a glance, Gideon had gotten everything Travis had wanted just by staying put while Travis had run off hoping college would pave that path for him. What he got instead was a life of living on pocket change, showers under storm drains, and an over abundance of sexual favors that never went anymore past thirty bucks in the ferret’s pockets.

Just like that, all of his mistakes rushed up to flood Travis’ mind and the only thing that was clear in his head was bafflement at how he was dumb enough to think things would ever work out in his favor.

“Don’t fuss so much! Better I carry it than you taking a dive and spilling the whole thing. Which room ya in?” Gideon asked.

The ferret frowned. He didn’t want this. Not now. But, how could he just say no without rousing suspicion that everything wasn’t fine? “Four-zero-three. It’s by the elevator.” A prickle of tension trickled down the fur along his spine, but he knew better than to expect Raymond to be in the room. The bear had been explicit in how long he’d be gone and what sort of depraved things they’d be doing once he got back.

Travis led Gideon into the room and approached the mini-fridge. Not so mini for a ferret. He had to use all his body strength to yank it open. “In there, I guess.”

Gideon paused to look around the room, taking in the glamor of it. “Pretty fancy digs! Awful chilly though.”

Travis just shrugged and stuffed his paws in his pockets. This didn’t feel right. It felt like there was so much to hide from someone who had been apart of his life for so long. At one point he might have said Gideon had been the best part. Now though? It would just hurt the fox if he tried to get close to Travis again. Gideon didn’t know about any of struggle, the pain, the shameful things Travis had to do to get by. Just thinking about it made the heat of embarrassment smother the cold air around his face. To say anything would be to invite all of that emotion to strangle him in front of his best friend. This wasn’t an opportunity to amend the past. Only for someone else to feel pity for Travis.

The tubby fox crouched down and put the ice bucket back into the fridge, trying to catch Travis’ dim eyes as he shut it. “You, um, doing alright?” Gideon swallowed, his ears beginning to fall against his skull. He obviously sensed something was wrong.

“I am, yeah.” Travis lied. “You?”

Gideon nodded, his tone jovial and lax, but he kept pressing Travis to answer him every time. “Been okay. Baking a whole wedding tomorrow. I’m the pastry chef. What about you? What’s brought you to Zootopia?” He chuckled, but it was too forced. Both predators were a little uneasy for different reasons.

“I’m, uh, a waiter. Or a busboy. Not for long, though. I’m getting another job after this.” Travis shifted his gaze towards the carpet floor, sighing. “You can go ahead and go. I don’t need any more help. The ice is in there.” The ferret gestured to the mini-fridge. Maybe if he feigned indifference Gid might leave on his own.

“I just figured, you know, we’d want to catch up. It’s been awhile since we talked. I haven’t seen you since you left the Burrows.”

Travis shrugged again. He didn’t want to talk about this. It never came up with Duke. Probably why Travis stayed with him as long as he did. Whenever either of them felt any pang of sadness they’d smother it with sex. If not Duke, Travis often found someone to make this throbbing heartache stop. “I left for a good reason. Figured no one really wanted me there anyway. Wasn’t a lot of fuss when I left. Figured Zootopia would be better for me.”

“We kind of thought that you’d just be on back after you did all your schooling.” Gideon tried to flash a wide grin, but it was too strained. It only put the ferret off even more. “You want to catch some lunch at the hotel diner? The boss of the hotel basically put everything I want to order on a tab. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if I brought a friend.”

Gid had changed over the years more obviously than Travis. This sort of kind gesture wasn’t one the Gideon Grey he knew would have prompted. Still, the ferret had little else to do but wait in the room for the bear who called the shots. All Raymond needed from him was to wait on Mr. Big and deliver his dessert, sell himself as an asset to the family, and get on with whatever happened next. Probably giving the hulking bodyguard a blowjob. That wasn’t until tomorrow though. What happened before that critical moment probably didn’t matter. Instead of putting up a fuss or defense, Travis shrugged again, complacent but dreading the exchange. Since this morning, he’d felt as though a switch had been flicked and nothing appeared to matter one way or the other. Things seemed futile wherever he turned.

“Whatever, Gid. Nothing else to do when there’s no wedding to wait on.”

 

\- - - 

 

“You dropped out of college?” Gideon balked. “Why? You always had good grades back in high school.”

Travis shrugged. “Had to. I could stay up till three in the morning studying and not worry about what happened after I took the test back in high school. College is different; the workload is bigger, the tests are harder. Even worse, it was all on my parent’s dime. Once I started dropping lower and lower on my exams they started giving me less money. Every time I talked to them I got yelled at about it. Eventually they just stopped paying for my classes and that was that. I went a little crazy and left it all behind.”

“They shouldn’t have been that hard on ya! What the heck were you studying? Rocket science?”

“Agriculture.”

“Agriculture? I wouldn’t think you even needed a textbook to learn how to grow things in Bunny Burrows. Sort of something you just grow up with.” Gideon opened his mouth and crammed another corner of the cheesecake he’d ordered. Travis hadn’t touched his yet.

“I wasn’t learning how to grow things!” The ferret’s wistful grin fell flat. “I was starting in the Biology department, but I really was aiming to get some kind of job in Experimental Agriculture Studies. Studying ways you could culture the soil and develop a self sustaining model.”

“Doesn’t our way of growing things, uh, work?”

“Only between the times we have to harvest and grow. I was trying to study how to make artificial biomes could work so we could be able to grow food all year round.”

“I never figured we’d need to grow more than what we got.”

Travis fell silent and stared at his plate. His ears were flat against his skull and his body sagged low, unwilling to force himself to stay up straight. “I guess you’re right.”

“I mean, you should see the Hopps carrot farm. Things overloaded with carrots. If you grew ‘em year round I bet half of them would rot in storage.” Gideon chewed another mouthful down, smacking his chops absently. He suddenly turned towards his friend, quirking his head to the side at the ferret’s odd posture. “You alright, Trav?”

“I don’t know why I thought you’d think differently than my parents. No matter how many times I explain what I want to do and why it’s a good thing, everyone shoots it down and tells me it isn’t necessary or that I’m wasting my time. Everything I do is pointless, my whole life has been pointless.” He clapped his paws onto his faces and began to drag them tiredly down his muzzle.

Gideon mouth had gone slack and dry, as though he’d chewed on a mouthful of cotton. He swallowed and cleared his throat. What he wanted above all else was to scoot over and hug Travis, but that was probably a bad move. “I’m awful sorry, Travis. I’m a real jerk.”

“No, stop trying to-”

“Just let me apologize proper, okay?” Gideon pleaded, and somehow his wide eyes and sad expression made Travis hesitate. The rotund fox breathed in hard and prepared himself. “I never got to say goodbye to you before you left. I figured you’d be better off without me making your life worse. You always were smart and people liked you. Only thing I ever brought you was a lot of trouble. I was mad at myself and everyone around me and I dragged you into hurting a lot of kids that just so I could have someone around to tell me I wasn’t the screwup I knew I was. I wanted to feel powerful even though I knew I wasn’t. It always bothered me that I couldn’t tell you that before you left. I’m sorry.”

“Gid, don’t feel so bad about it. Heck, you were in jail the day I was leaving. My parents paid my bail and shoved me out to college the next day.”

“Oh. Ha! You’re right! Man, remember that?” Gideon clapped his paw to his face and started giggling, punching the ferret’s shoulder gently. “Couldn’t make sense on how to drive a tractor between the two of us.”

Travis rolled his eyes at the ceiling. “The steering was locked and yet you somehow made it plow through the whole fairground.”

“Never seen so many rabbits jump so high! Awww, we were the worst!”

For a brief minute the two were lost in this short burst of giddy chuckling and an uncomfortable silence followed, long and hidden by the noise of Mr. Big’s hotel restaurant.

“I don’t care if you think you’re a mess. I still want ya to be my little buddy.” Gideon mumbled, looking over to Travis. The wide smile he offered seemed to be earnest enough to get a similar one to spread across the ferret’s face.

“I’m not so little now. Every thing is a lot bigger. Scarier too.” A hot gust of breath blew out of the ferret, exasperated. “I feel a little better having a friend around. I guess we’re friends. I know next to nothing about you these days though.”

Gideon folded his hands out in front of him and shrugged. “I never got any better till I got older. Didn’t even properly graduate. I didn’t have any friends save for you and everyone in the county knew what a terror I was, snarling and bullying their kids around. I kept trying to be that big bad fox. Worked out as well as you might expect. Mom tried everything to help me. Didn’t listen though, still wanted to pretend I was the big bad fox I had made everyone think I was.”

Travis listened intently. He didn’t look numb or burdened with his own problems at the moment, so Gideon kept hitting his story as hard as he could. “Grandpa Grey kicked me out and I sort of floated between jobs. Got bigger and dumber and the sheriff and I got really close.” He chuckled, rubbing his brow at the memory. “You remember Hassleford? He’s still Sheriff, you know.”

The ferret grimaced. “He always said we’d end up being thugs if we never got our act cleaned up.”

“Yeah, he kept yelling that sort of stuff even when I was. Real mean, but real persistent too. Asking me what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go in life. Helped me get into therapy and get things straightened out.”

Travis nodded, a bit awestruck. “You seem to have gotten yourself in a good place. Baking for the biggest boss of Tundra Town. Jealous.” He gave Gideon a thumbs-up, chuckling.

“Yeah, crazy how things turned out, huh?” Gideon shrugged. He glanced at his watch. They’d been chatting over an hour like this and it had finally turned out for the better. The fox glanced around. He’d at least calmed Travis down, maybe even rekindled something akin to what they might have had back when they were kids. Regardless, if the ferret stuck around long enough for either Judy or Nick to spot him, there was no telling what they’d do. Arrest him? Question him, probably. It’d look like Gideon had set him up. Already he knew he was chipping away at the ferret’s secrets, priming him for whatever mess he’d gotten himself into.

“Say,” Gideon said, clapping Travis on the shoulder. “Speaking of baking, I gotta get to work. Mr. Big wants a full tasting for tomorrows sweets tonight and I better get started. You wanna come?”

Travis blinked and gaped at the fox. “I don’t know the first thing about baking.”

“Naw, but you always had a sweet tooth. I just need you around to taste stuff, make sure I’m not using too much salt or if the icing looks too drippy.”

For a brief moment, it looked as though Travis might bolt. He squirmed and grunted uncomfortably, but to Gideon Grey’s delight he nodded and smiled.

Not wasting another moment, Gid grabbed Travis hand and led him along. “You got to see the digs this kitchen has! They’re oven is the size of my bedroom!”

At first, Travis walked uncertainly, still wary, but soon he snaked his arms around the red fox’s thick forearm. Despite how terrified he felt, he was worried for Travis most of all. If he could, it was worth trying to protect him as best he could.

 

\- - -

 

“Careful with your claws. Don’t let them poke through the glove.” Gideon demonstrated for Travis, sliding the glove snugly around his thick paw, leaving just enough room for the blunt tips to gently press against the latex.

Travis felt ridiculous, yet giddy at the same time. He pressed down on the dough, careful not to push too hard and poke a hole in the glove. “This stuffs tough.”

“You get a feel for it eventually. Just keep balling it up and mashing it back down. Here,” The chubby fox hobbled over, carrying a measuring cup of milk and poured it over the stiff rod of dough that Travis was working. “Hard work right?”

“I can see how you got yours that thick doing stuff like this.” Travis panted, already feeling tired as he rolled and piled the dough over the milk that soaked the sweet, chunky mixture. He paused to take a long look at Gideon’s apron. “Good Baked Stuff? That’s your shtick? Funny name for a business.”

“Heck of a mouthful, ain’t it? Least it’s honest!” Gideon laughed and Travis felt his tail tremble at the sound. He didn’t know what was happening to him. He hadn’t expected to have fun around Gid, at least not this tame kind of fun. When they were kids they were crude, crass and curt. Going from getting kicks stealing tickets from easy to beat-up prey to giggling about bakery slogans was appalling. He was glad to see Gid had changed for the better though.

“Where’d you learn to bake anyway? I don’t remember your mom ever really doing it?” Travis asked.

The ferret’s question seemed to make Gideon’s smile grow thinner. He shrugged. “Picked it up during therapy. Me and the Doc figured I should try making apologies to all the people I hurt in my youth. Adding a hot blueberry pie to an apology someone might not appreciate might smooth things over. Turned out to be more true than ever.” He moved across the kitchen and began sprinkling powdered sugar over some warm pastries that had come out of the oven. “You remember Judy Hopps?”

Travis glanced up. He recalled some of the the kids they pushed around, but for some odd reason Judy had eluded his memory back then. His recent memory, however, forced his heart to skip a beat. “The bunny cop? The one who solved the Nighthowler case?”

Gideon laughed and came back with another measuring cup of milk. He nodded to Travis to move his hands as he set the measuring cup down on the counter. “Oh yeah, one and the same. She was off in Zootopia so I popped on over to her folks place with my best blueberry pie. Figured apologizing to them was the next best thing if she wasn’t there. Nearly tazed the crud out of me before I started talking about what I was doing and how I was trying to get better. Must of touched ‘em since they decided to help me save up and start my own business. Started doing research, using the right ingredients, finding a lot of passion for something for once in my life. Before you know it we’re business partners and I’m helping predator and prey all over Bunny Burrows come together over some good baked stuff. Felt like I wasn’t a screwup anymore now that I could make people smile and get some money for it.”

Travis felt himself tense up as Gideon suddenly stepped behind him. His apron pressed against Travis as he reached around the thinner predator, taking the ferret’s paws and moving them over to make room for the fox’s thick digits. “Let me show you something. Make a bowl out of the center of the dough.” He demonstrated, kneading the mound expertly and gently. All the while, Travis felt his heart pound and shudder as the warmth of the heavyset fox poured over him. “Then you can pour the milk in and start folding the ends in. Helps mix the drier parts better as you just squish it all together. It’s a nice performance too if you’re trying to show off for someone.” Gideon continued, chuckling as he rolled the crinkled edges of the dough into the milky center, soon churning the dough into a smooth and slick loaf.

“What’s going into this?” Travis mumbled.

“Some raisins. Cinnamon. Popping some powdered sugar on it once it’s done in the oven.” Gideon reached over and pulled a small plastic container over, raising piled up the rim, and kept kneading the dough, smoothing out the creases. “Go ahead and sprinkle a few here and there.”

As Travis followed the lax instructions he was given, he kept talking, quietly. “I never got to get hands on with this sort of thing. My family just bought it from the store.”

“Heck, give ‘em a call and they can start buying some stuff from me once in awhile! Maybe you could try popping one of these in their oven sometime. You’re already doing a great job! You popped out some tarts, got a rundown on cookies! The icing I told you to stir has the right consistency and color, the whole rigmarole on cannoli-”

“I don’t think they’d even pickup the phone, Gid.” Travis huffed, “I haven’t talked to them in about-I don’t know. Lotta years,” The ferret paused, mulling over the past miserable years in Zootopia he’d endured. He missed the luxury of a stable home and a stable checking account that he was once privy to. “Nothing has been working out no matter what I do.”

“You have this job right? You said that was going to lead to some opportunities?” Gideon hummed, trying to keep his tone free of worry or pressure, but Travis felt that weight of self-enforced guilt in his guts.

“I don’t know if it will though. The waiter job is only temporary and I don’t know if the people I’m going to be working are really what I want. I mean, you know what sort of animal Mr. Big is.”

There was a long pause until Gideon pushed the dough aside and suddenly grabbed Travis’ gloved paws. “You know you can tell me if you need help, Travis. I know it’s only been a little while since we sort of, um, just ‘met’ each all over again, but I want to let you know I want to be that best friend you deserve. Just apologizing and shoving a pie in your face isn’t gonna make up for the muck I dragged you through.”

Travis whipped his ears in several directions, confused as he pushed out of Gideon’s looming bulk. “Wait, what are you trying to get at?”

“I mean,” Gideon quietly folded his arms in front of him, twisting the pink, flour covered apron feverishly. “I kind of was hoping if you weren’t happy here in Zootopia you might want to hitch a ride back to the Burrows with me.”

The ferret’s mouth hung open and he shook his head, appalled. “Go back to Bunny town? And do what? Yank up carrots out of the ground for the rest of my pathetic life?”

“Naw, you could work in the bakery with me if you wanted! I’m getting a lot of money from this job! I could get a new oven, patch the truck up. It’s getting to be a big handful and I wanted to hire someone who has a handle on the stuff and isn’t shy of learning.”

“Are you-you’re trying to give me a job? Make me ditch this place?” Travis felt his fur bristle, agitated and uncertain of what to make of this.

“If you think you’d be better off here, I won’t stop you.”

For a whole minute neither predators said a word. Gideon felt that any more pressure might push Travis over a nervous edge and he’d refuse the fox altogether and Travis could be awestruck at the offer. The ferret had placed all his bets on the force that ran Tundra Town from the seedy, chilled depths. Above all else, it was the chance to finally belong somewhere, to have a strict purpose and people who would look for you, treat you like family. Despite this, he hesitated, staring at Gideon Grey and he felt torn between the two.

A loud, ringing alarm bellowed in the kitchen. Travis fished his phone from his pocket and his face twisted with sudden fear. “It’s eight already?”

“Yeah, I kind of lose track of time when I’m baking. Travis I just wanted to tell-”

“I have to go,” Travis began to run towards the swinging door that led out of the kitchen, pausing briefly to give one last look towards Gideon. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow!”

Travis began to run. Raymond was going to kill him, one way or another, but maybe if he was tuckered out by the time he got to their room the bear would go easy on him.

 

\- - - 

 

“I’m not making excuses, I just stepped out for a bit.” Travis wheezed in the bear’s heavy fist.

“I think you’re missing the point here, kiddo.” Raymond drew one of his blunt claw tips down the length of the ferret’s nose. His tone was dark and the scowl he wore made Travis’ struggles cease. “You want a place in the family you got to follow protocol. I hoped the spirit of our little arrangement might help set the mood, but I guess you need more coaching.” The polar bear alternated to another claw, this one sharp and long. He curled the tip into Travis shirt and dragged it down in one deft dip of his paw and batted the tattered remains of Travis’ shirt onto the floor.

“Ha! I’m not killing you, kid. Relax.”

Travis couldn’t stop trembling. “That was my last shirt.” He mumbled, grimacing.

“Don’t whine, you’re getting a new uniform. If all goes well, you’ll get another tomorrow to commemorate your place in the family business. If not,” The bear’s muzzle suddenly pressed against Travis’ bare chest, the thick black lips parting and gently taking a nibble of the ferret’s long torso. “The naturalist look suits you just fine.”

At the very least the thug Travis was trapped with was amicable enough to get distracted by his libido. Yet, there was a twisted knot in his gut as the bear’s teeth nipped and mouthed along the long belly, tensing as they bit down on the ferret’s pants and dragged them down. A long groan followed as the bear’s wet nose huffed along the newly exposed groin of the mustelid. “You smell sweet. You been snacking on treats while I’ve been gone?”

Travis gulped, thinking back on the doting tune of Gideon Grey’s voice and the feel of dough under his paws. “Y-y-yeah, I got some room service.” His voice was high and tense, ripe with the internal terror that seemed to drive the hulking bear wild. Probably because he was lying through his clenched teeth.

“Mmmm, stop squirming.” Raymond said, clasping the ferret in between his gargantuan paws and nosing over Travis’ groin. His tongue lolled out and the damp flat of the thick organ slid up over the peanut sized testicles and made a wet, warm trail of saliva and flicked over the ferret’s face.

A massive ursine thumb began to hover and stroke the ferret’s sheathe. The thick, drooling black lips rubbed over the ferret’s muzzle, the hot breath of the bear washing over Travis. “Get hard for me.”

It was a tall order for the ferret. His nerves were being tormented by the anxiety he had for what was riding on tomorrows performance. He reminded himself that this in itself was a performance review. The only reason he had this opportunity was because he decided to whore himself out to one of Mr. Big’s bodyguards. He closed his eyes, trying to get the fear and uncertainty that fluttered about in his stomach. He had to move past the instinct to flee and give the bear something to work with.

He began to focus; Gid scooting behind him. Soft paws. Plush middle. Guiding him with soothing words and gentle tone.

Travis let out a shocked grunt as the bear’s tongue lapped at the erect cock between the ferret’s legs.

“Good boy. You’re starting to learn who’s boss.” Raymond growled, increasing the rhythm of his harsh lapping to a hard shove of his hot tongue. It sent Travis into a wild frenzy. He tossed and turned helplessly in the bears grasp, suddenly thriving on that lack of control, of following commands. Raymond knew best; that was the motto he had seemingly adopted when he left Duke Weaselton for something more meaningful than petty crimes and petty fucking. If he was successful, he thought this might be apart of the deal. Being the bear’s own personal booty call.

Was it better than what Gid wanted for him?

Guilt seeped into Travis’ state of arousal. Shame followed quickly after. The constant pressure of the bear’s tongue dragging up and down his crotch was pushing him along the edge of releasing all that bottled up emotion. He cried out in a cracked sigh, bucking his hips into the wet fold of Raymond’s dominance and began to feel the arc of pleasure wrack each of his limbs painfully. The swabbing of the bear’s tongue suddenly stopped.

“My turn.”

Raymond dropped Travis onto the bed. He gasped as he hit the mattress, groggy as he blearily looked up at the behemoth looming above. The polar bear savored this moment, undoing his tie and the strained buttons of his vest and shirt slowly. Piece by piece, he removed the attire that designated him as a powerful member of Tundra Town. He was an authority to be feared and respected. As he tossed off the remaining clothes that clung to his chubby frame he became something to be worshiped from where Travis sat.

Raymond turned around and opened the dresser and retrieved a black bottle. He shook a heavy amount into his paw and began to lather it over his emerging cock.

“Is that lube?” Travis asked. He began to tremble at the implication of the hungry stare that Raymond shot towards him. “You’re joking right?”

“Chill out, kid. It’s a good brand. You’re gonna be fine.” Raymond’s bulky mass hobbled over to the end of the bed. He snatched the ferret’s legs and spread them wide. 

Instinctively, Travis’ tail curled up over his crotch, blocking his tight pucker from the bear’s greedy intentions. “Whoa, whoa! I have to do actual work tomorrow!”

“You’re not going to break. I know how to fuck an ass like this.” He moved a paw to forcefully nudge the shivering, bristly tail out of the way.

“I’m a ferret! I’m not supposed to get skewered on bear c-,” The bear’s hand suddenly dropped down onto Travis’ face and chest. One thick finger shoved its way into his mouth and the complaints Travis was trying to spout out were choked and muffled. His long body writhed and the pressure of the paw increased, mashing him down into the soft mattress painfully as the bear dragged Travis to the end of the bed.

He kicked with what little strength he could muster, bumping the rotund, sagging paunch that he was neatly tucked under. The heat radiating from Raymond’s cock forced a whine out of his clogged mouth as it nudged itself between his legs. The tip settled under his tail and pulsed against the clenching back entrance of the ferret.

Travis couldn’t let this happen. Not like this, not with Raymond. The thought made him want to throw up. He started to yell through the finger rubbing over the inside of his mouth. “Stop! I don’t want you to fuck me!”

Raymond halted and his lower jaw clenched, annoyed. “You take cock up your ass all the time. You’re a whore. Think I’ve earned this with all the shit I had to put up with today.”

Travis reached up and pushed the bear’s thick paw up off of him. “If you don’t give a fuck about me, that’s your problem. If you want Mr. Big to actually eat the fucking cannoli you want him to I can’t be waddling around with a ruptured anus!” His words were shrill, demanding, and for the first time Travis felt like he was actually getting through to someone. He huffed a sigh of relief as Raymond took a step back. 

The bear wore a scowl, but he was nodding. He hated giving Travis some leeway, but he ran with his train of thought. “You’re right.” He scratched his stomach, grunting with disappointment. “I’m taking a shower.”

“Thank you. Maybe I can give you a massage or something after.” Travis mumbled, trying to make some leeway to help the bear relax. He didn’t want to make the brute more angry than he already was. 

“I’d like that.” Raymond grumbled as his lumbering footsteps disappeared into the bathroom.

Travis had to spend the night with this beast, endure whatever was in store for him tomorrow and then he had to decide.

The memory was still fresh in his mind. He couldn’t keep living in between a decision. Eventually, he’d have to let someone down.

Travis stared at the ceiling, running the day through his head. He didn’t think he had a choice in this at all before Gid. If he had to he could survive Raymond’s brutal rutting just to get a taste of some stability even if it meant getting the fat bear off as often as he needed to. Yet, he found himself holding onto those brief moments earlier today; Gideon was offering him another choice, one that he wasn’t sure about but he hoped some sleep might help him make up his mind.

 

\- - -

 

Gideon winced as he read the large, all caps reply Judy sent after Gideon sent the details of his encounter with Travis.

He wiped his paw on his apron, sighing as he tapped out on his phone, “Aren’t you busy with a wedding? Oven’s ringing, we’ll talk later.”

The fox had some trouble sleeping last night. Now it was the day he’d been hired to show his chops and all the while he couldn’t help but keep Travis in his mind. He kept glancing around the kitchen at the other animals who were working the large room where the reception would be held. He’d been baking all morning and by now Mr. Big would have seen his nephew wed. More than that, last nights tasting had gone well. Each and every one of the pastries Gideon had prepared was exquisite, too fancy of a word for Gideon to really appreciate but it was nice to be held in such high esteem. 

At least he was busy enough to keep him distracted. Decorating each and every pastry was the hardest thing for Gideon, switching from delicately pinching carrot shaped mints and candies to his cakes and pastries to a tiny set of tongs that he used to adjust the sweets that would be perfectly sized for the rodents that Mr. Big’s side of the family had invited. 

It was a solitary activity and one Gideon enjoyed doing alone. Hence why he suddenly noticed a sheep, dressed like a waiter from the looks of it, was leaning over one of the trays of cannoli’s and twisting a pepper grinder over one of the tiny vole-sized pastry. Gideon blinked in confusion. He was the only one in charge of the pasties as he understood it. The sheep ran a spatula under the still warm cannoli and lifted it up. Gideon quirked his head and walked forward.

“Hey, um, mister?” He said, loud enough to grab the sheep’s attention. “What’re ya doing? These aren’t supposed to go out until Mr. Big gets the dance with his new nephew.”

The sheep’s expression was hard to read. He seemed to stiffen and then turn only his head towards Gideon, frowning. “It’s a special request. Mr. Big’s peckish after the wedding ceremony.”

“You sure that’s for Mr. Big?” Gideon said, persisting. “Pretty sure I’d know, me being the pastry chef and all, if he wanted pepper of all things on his cannoli.”

“Just mind your own business and ice those cupcakes, Cupcake.” The sheep mumbled to himself as he walked away, weaving through the traffic of the kitchen staff and depositing the cannoli on a blue plate.

Gideon shook his head, glancing back and forth trying to see where Travis might turn up.

 

\- - - 

 

Travis tried to loosen the bow tie he had to wear when he wasn’t pouring juice for folks. The thing was practically choking him. The effort it took not to spill the sweet, alcoholic juice all over the tiny cups made his eyes twitch uncomfortably. He thought he’d be donning a napkin and taking peoples orders, not working a banquet table. Down the length of it were an assortment of finely crafted appetizers and at the very end were some of the same kinds pastries and pies that Gideon had showed him how to make yesterday. The whole room was filled with rabbits and rodents and a few taller species here and there. There were polar bear bodyguard’s haunting every exit and entrance it seemed.

The ferret felt someone nudge him from the side. He turned and stared at Raymond, nearly knocking over the juice bowl out of surprise. “Jeez, give me a warning before you sneak up on me like that.”

“Shut up. Turn back around. Stop looking at me.” Raymond commanded, but in a quiet tone that made it clear they were to keep quiet.

“You’re doing good. A sheep named Doug has Mr. Big’s cannoli. He’s waiting for you in the kitchen. Take it from him and start moving Mr. Big. Sheep. Cannoli. Blue ceramic plate.” The heavy bulk beside Travis rumbled with a growl that only he could hear. “Get moving. Make a good impression. Act desperate if he isn’t listening.”

The ferret didn’t waste another second. He wanted to rush but he needed to be careful about this next duty. It meant making his way across the room to the kitchen without falling flat on his face. He pushed through the swinging door and was shocked to see the loud chaos that packed the kitchen despite the oddly calming celebration back behind Travis. He quickly moved out of the way and caught the sight of one of the waiters, a sheep, moving towards him. He’d apparently been waiting. “Are you Doug?” Travis asked.

“You Raymond’s bitch?” The sheep said bluntly.

Travis blinked. He nodded slowly. “Yeah, I guess. Does everybody know me under that misnomer?”

“Here’s the goods. Carry it with this and no one will spare you a second glance. Don’t trip.” The sheep placed the cannoli onto a large pastry tray and handed it over to Travis, then tossed what looked like a long, plastic grinder of some sort into the nearby trash can. “Later.” The sheep suddenly began to loosen his bow and began walking away, tossing the bow tie into another trash can along the way.

Travis felt like a stone had dropped into his gut. He held the tray awkwardly, realizing he had the one thing that could decide which direction his life might go in his paws. He’d come this far relying on Zootopia’s opportunities. Abandoning it all made him feel like the last few years here were all just a waste. He turned, ready to make a straight line towards Mr. Big and finally make something of himself.


	4. Chapter 4

Travis couldn’t move. He was staring at the future he’d chosen for himself and he needed to have everything in order before he walked up to Mr. Big. How should he introduce himself? Would he have to offer the cannoli first or try to spin himself as a humble waiter first? Better yet, what sort of job experience would he even have to offer? He wasn’t a thug or a wily enough charlatan. Most he could do was spam observant facts on the fineries of harvesting hibiscus and the proper manner in which to farm insect protein. Raymond’s plan put Travis in the presence of the most powerful animal in Tundra Town but he never got past what Travis was supposed to do after putting the cannoli in front of Mr. Big. 

A paw clamped around Travis’ arm. He turned, eyes wide and whiskers twitching, staring at Gideon Grey. 

“Where’re you going with that Trav?” Gideon demanded.

Travis was taken aback at first. Then he had to remind himself that Gideon was supposed to be back here, was supposed to be wearing the too tall hat of a pastry chef, baking sweet cakes and pastries for the richest mammal this end of Zootopia.

“I can’t talk now, Gid. I gotta get moving. Mr. Big’s waiting!” He insisted, but the red fox’s fingers dug into the fabric of Travis’ uniform.

Gideon held up his other paw and presented—a salt shaker? No, more like a pepper grinder. “Can you just let me see that cannoli really quick? I think someone did something to it.” He gave the grinder a shake, frowning. “You just wouldn’t put pepper on a cannoli. The hecks in here anyway? It’s some kind of flake-” He sniffed at the bottom of the grinder and scrunched up his nose at the strange odor.

Travis narrowed his eyes and tried to yank his arm free from Gid’s grip. “Gideon, I don’t need you braining crazy theories. It’s probably just ‘cause he has some weird recipe from his grandma or something. I didn’t come this far just to give up and let all my time in Zootopia go to waste.” He started walking, finally tugging his arm out of the fox’s grasp while awkwardly balancing the platter. He pushed through out of the kitchen and marched out into the floor of the reception room.

“Yeah, but he would have told me about something like that.” Gideon protested, his voice growing fainter which each swing of the door.

Travis kept to the wall and moved with as much official posture he could manage for a ferret. Straight back, upturned tail, attentive ears; all while keeping the platter level to his head with one hand. It was going to short work getting to Mr. Big. The three polar bear bodyguards wouldn’t be a problem. Raymond had sent word ahead and they’d part for a small fry like Travis. He began running the plan through his head, stepping with a more confident stride towards the table of Mr. Big.

 

\- - - -

 

Gideon Grey started to panic. His hunches weren’t always right, but considering the types of animals he and Travis might be dealing with he ought to dig in and do something. He tossed off the tall poofy hat he’d been wearing all day and charged out into the reception hall. He was tempted to simply tackle Travis and put and end to whatever was happening, but by doing that he would just ruin Travis’ chances and make a big scene that’d embarrass Mr. Big in the process. Still, it was better than the alternative if he was right about something bad getting into the cannoli meant for the big boss of Tundra Town.

“Kitchen staff aren’t allowed to disrupt the reception. Get back in there.”

The baker turned and was startled by the hulking presence of one of the numerous polar bears leering down at him. Gideon suddenly saw a way out of this whole mess. “You’re one of Mr. Big’s bodyguards, right?” He asked, frantically pointing at Travis as the ferret closed in on Mr. Big’s table, trying to shout over the music that the wedding guests danced to. “I think that cannoli that ferret’s delivering has been poisoned! It’s going straight to Mr. Big! You gotta stop him!”

The bear’s brow lifted, but rather than look distressed, the bodyguard appeared to mull over what Gideon had declared. “You don’t say.” He said, taking a step forward and pushing Gideon back into the swinging door with his weight.

Gideon gaped up at the bear and dug his heels into the floor. “Hey! I’m telling ya, there’s something wrong with that-” The bear’s huge paw suddenly clamped over Gid’s muzzle. He suddenly found himself scooped up with the bear’s other arm and lifted up off the ground. He kicked, confused and appalled at what was happening.

“I’m thinking you need some fresh air, fox. Maybe it’ll help clear your head. Lucky for you, I’m here to remind you when to shut up and stick to decorating cakes.” The bear pushed through the kitchen, getting several wary eyes from the staff, but none moved a paw to help Gideon as he was tossed out a back door and into a snow covered heap of garbage.

The fox scrambled, sneezing as he tried to push himself up out of the snow. He watched as the polar bear’s white muzzle split into a long grin. “Don’t you worry about Travis. I’ll be taking good care of him.” The bear jabbed a thumb towards himself and laughed, slamming the door shut.

The cold air made the fur stiffen on Gideon’s bare arms as he fumbled out of the unstable heap and threw himself at the door. He yanked and twisted the doorknob, hissing with every cold breath that seeped into his lungs. Locked. He whirled, kicking the snow covered ground in frustration as he started to run through the garbage alley. It might take a minute, but he was certain he could bolt around the building and make his way back to the reception hall. Gideon only hoped that Travis might take an extra long while to make his pitch before Mr. Big took even a nibble of his cannoli.

 

\- - - - 

 

“Excuse me? Mr. Big?” Travis said, trying to lean past the intimidating presence of the polar bears that encircled the head table where the boss of Tundra Town sat. “I’m here with compliments from the chef! It’s a, uh, cannoli.” He tried to get a handle on the tremor in his voice. If only he had a mirror to assess his posture and his expression. This was the moment that might make or break whatever future he hoped to make for himself and he couldn’t even see the man who’d make it possible.

He heard a snap and a mumble from behind the immense bear in front of him and Travis saw the small table where Mr. Big sat. Another shrew in a suit was there as well, laughing before he noticed the ferret. Travis saw the puzzled look that suddenly arose on Mr. Big’s face, but he felt his chances rise when it simply turned to a gaze of indifference. “Let him through.” Mr. Big muttered to the bear in front of Travis and to the ferret’s delight the huge ursine stepped aside. 

Travis eagerly stepped forward, his spring-like spine pressed tightly into a straight, rigid stance as he approached the table, lifting the small plate with the pastry delicately. He saw the other shrew start to wiggle and squirm. “Oh! Oh, you’re getting cannoli! No wonder you passed on another slice of the cake, Uncle Big.”

“I’m old fashioned, Benny. It won’t pass up your great grandmama’s recipe, but it’s good enough.” The shrew grumbled towards his nephew, glancing curiously from the cannoli to the mustelid who had delivered it. “What’s your name, son?”

This startled Travis. He was suddenly the attention of everyone at the table; Mr. Big, a newlywed nephew, and a host of bears that could rips his tail off like it was paper. “T-t-travis, Mr. Big.” He forced himself to widen his smile, careful to keep his canines from jutting out of his muzzle.

The shrew grunted and kept staring, fidgeting with the fork and knife that sat beside his plate. “Thank you for your service.” He paused, digging the utensils into the cannoli. Travis watched, suddenly realizing that he was expected to walk away now, out of Mr. Big’s life. He opened his mouth to say something but Mr. Big’s nephew suddenly let out a gust of laughter.

“What are you doing!” The groom guffawed, pointing at his uncle’s tiny hands as they dug into the pastry.

“I’m eating dessert.”

“With a fork? You could scarf this thing down with your bare paws, why bother?”

Travis suddenly felt his voice rise up from his chest. “Excuse me, Mr. Big,” He felt their attention swerve back to him and he felt the bear’s follow suit. “I could-ah, get your nephew a clean set of utensils if he’d like some as well?”

The bushy eyebrows rose and Mr. Big seemed to hesitate.

Before the older shrew could say something, Benny reached out and grabbed the cannoli, rolling his eyes and giving Travis an apologetic look. “Don’t worry about it, sir.” He said towards Travis then turned back to his uncle. “Maybe it’s time you forgo your old fashioned ways. Live a little. Get your-” He took a thick bite of the cannoli, the creamy crunch filling his whole mouth. “Paws dirty for once.”

Mr. Big rolled his eyes, turning to Travis once more. “Could you spare me a napkin, son. Then after that I won’t need anything else from you.”

“Sure thing sir,” Travis said, beaming as he dug in his pockets for a spare piece of cloth barely bigger than his finger. Now was the time to dive towards the question, right when he was being of use. “But if you don’t mind I was wondering if you might have a spare job available for someone after the wedding reception is over?”

“No, Mr. Blackfoot.” Mr. Big said sternly, calmly taking the napkin from Travis’ pinched claws.

The ferret felt his mouth go dry at the sound of his last name coming out of an animal he just met. “I’m sorry?”

“I know who you are and I know what you’re looking for, kid. You won’t find it here. Go job hunting somewhere else instead of encroaching on a families celebration.” The words were direct and merciless. “I’m not going to swoop in and pull you out of whatever oven you’ve crawled into. Take responsibility for yourself and you’ll go far. Good day.” With that the shrew turned back to his nephew offering the napkin.

Travis felt his arms clutch at his fine clothes, the claws digging into the fabric as he stood there, speechless. He’d barely gotten a word out before he was turned down. The sound of the revelry and upbeat music battled against the ferret’s guts as nausea rolled about. He felt foolish and abandoned. Raymond had made it sound so easy. Travis began to back away, knowing at this point it was futile. At the very least he had tried.

“Benny. Take the napkin. You’re a mess.” He heard Mr. Big say this in a rough tone, but an instant later he heard a stab of worry in the old rodent’s voice. “Benny? You choking? That’s why you cut the thing, now swallow it whole.”

Travis glanced up and saw the young shrew doubled over the table. His face was still and the ears sagging low as his eyes bulged, red with tears and strain.

“Benny?” The hesitation in Mr. Big’s voice made Travis shiver. The hunched over form of the young shrew shook as each breath suddenly became a heaving struggle. “Are you choking?” 

No words came out. Only a weak rasp as Benny braced himself against the table, trying to stand and dragging the table cloth with him. The tableware scattered onto the floor and Mr. Big shot a look to the largest bear among them. “Koslav, get a car and a driver. Take him to a hospital. Just do one thing before you go.” 

The bear looked stunned. He reluctantly parted from Mr. Big’s side. He reached down and scooped up Mr. Big’s nephew in his huge paws. “What do you need?”

“Send someone to grab the baker. Make sure the other bears are on the lookout for anyone trying to run outside the hotel.” The shrew ‘s panic was stifled, for the moment. Travis’ wasn’t, however, and he jumped back as the shrew cast a look that might have burnt the bushy fur prickling below his brow. “Kevin, grab the ferret.”

One of the bears snatched Travis up, grunting. “What’re we doing with him, boss?”

Mr. Big’s seemed to chew over the question for a second before he said with complete resolve. “I want to ice him with the baker. I’ll meet you at the manor after I disperse the reception and ensure my nephew is in good hands.”

“Wait, you’re going to what?” Travis exclaimed, letting out a sharp cry of surprise as one of the bears snatched Travis up. He opened his mouth to try to yell for help but for his muzzle crushed shut in Kevin’s mighty paws as he lumbered away from the reception hall as the guests began to notice the huge ursine bodyguard’s rushing to respond to the instructions coming in from the radios in their ears.

 

\- - - -

 

Travis tried to whip he head around to get an idea on where he was being taken, twisting his spring-like spine in the bear’s vice grip. 

“Quit it.” Kevin mumbled. The bear was efficient at his one job: keep the ferret from escaping. A door opened and the bitter cold of the outside nipped at the ferret’s body as he gasped. The hot tears streaming down his muzzle only made it worse. He caught sight of long, black limousine waiting for him on the streets. It looked and felt more like a hearse though.

“C’mon, don’t do this!” He squealed as the door opened. The bear didn’t respond, merely dipping his huge frame into the vehicle and dropping the ferret in the middle seat.

The other end of the car suddenly opened and to Travis’ dismay it was blocked by another bear’s large bulk. What he wasn’t expecting was Gideon Grey being dragged inside, barking and yapping his mouth off. “Ya ugly slug-munching git! I’m not the one you need to be grabbing!” He was cut off as the bear tossed him inside, slamming the door closed behind him.

The fox landed on Travis, making both of them let out a pained ‘oof!’ that was quickly interrupted with the rev of the limousine’s engine. Travis wriggled out from under Gideon and yelled up towards the driver. “This is a mistake! I didn’t do anything.” He fell back into the seat cushion as the vehicle suddenly kicked into gear and started driving away from the hotel.

“Fat load of crap that is,” Gideon barked, gritting his teeth out of frustration. “I told you someone messed that thing up and you took it to Mr. Big anyway.”

Travis clutched his ears, his clipped claws still digging in hard enough to leave red lines under the thin fur. “This isn’t my fault!” Travis whirled at Gideon and he was startled at the sight he saw. The fox’s left eye was half closed, already swelling and the skin under the red fur curdling into a boiling purple color. Blood crawled down his nostrils and his white pastry chef clothes were stained with dirt and covered in snow. The ferret cast a glance over to the polar bear beside Gideon and shrank back. “This is my fault.” He said with sudden certainty. He remembered the panic and the terror that had spread over Benny’s face after he ate the poisoned cannoli Travis had hand delivered. He might be dead right now. He’d banked on Raymond’s word instead of Gideon’s and this is where it got him. “This is how it’s always going to be isn’t it?”

Gideon watched the ferret shrink into himself, folding his limbs to his chest and staring ahead of them, out the front window where the snow pelted the limousine. He wiped his nose with his sleeve. “Naw, that ain’t true.” He tried to push back against the bears that sat on either side of the two boys from Bunny Burrows. “You two mind making some room?”

The two growled and the one called Kevin leaned up to the driver. “Drive faster.”

“We’re supposed to ice those two, not the whole limo.” The driver grumbled back. “Besides, Mr. Big wants to talk to them before they take the plunge.”

Kevin snorted and sat back in the seat, glaring at Travis. “Least he won’t have to wait long till they sink to the bottom. Little runts like this don’t last long.”

“I didn’t know it was poisoned!” Travis pleaded before the bear cuffed him across the muzzle.

“Save it for the boss. Not that it’ll matter. I want a nice quiet ride back.” Kevin shifted his harsh gaze towards Gideon and the plump fox eventually dropped his defiant glare, gritting his teeth as he stared down at the floor.

“Rotten way to kill someone. Poisoning MY pastry. Disgusting.” Gideon chewed on a claw, trying to needle out a plan to get both him and Travis out.

The ferret could only sit in stunned silence. He had to find a way to spin this back onto Raymond. Turn the tables out from him and Gideon. How could he do that without making him look all the more guilty was the question.

 

\- - - - 

 

The room was decadent and smelled of crisp charcoal, despite the cold air. The manor they were in was laden with the same atmosphere. It was a welcome change of scenery from the limo or being lugged around. At the very least Gideon had his feet on the ground. That hardly set him at ease, however. He was flanked by two bears, biggest brutes he’d ever seen. Despite growing up as one of the bigger kids with a mean streak, he finally began to feel the fear and danger he must have inflicted on other kids. One glance over to Travis twisted his stomach in worse ways than the thugs did. The ferret’s eyes were bleary and the fur around them was damp. The wiry arms twisted around each other, the dainty paws wringing over one another feverishly. 

“Hey,” Gideon whispered, his voice making Travis flinch. “We’re gonna get outta this, alrighty?”

Travis began to tremble. “This isn’t the police we’re dealing with, Gid. These are dangerous, really unsavory, people.”

“Just leave the talking to me.”

“Gid, you failed the public speaking course back in high school. You don’t know who you’re dealing with. Just leave this to me, I got someone I can throw under the bus for us.”

“We don’t got to work hard at this, just got to tell Mr. Big the truth. I’m sure he’ll let us go.” Just then, the door at the far end of the room opened and a bodyguard ducked through, carrying the shrew in his immense paws. 

Immediately, Travis blurted out, “Mr. Big I can explain!”

Also immediately, Gideon protested, “I would never bake a death cannoli!”

“Show them the ice, Koslov.” Mr. Big said impassively. “Let em’ know how little patience I have.”

Gideon felt the harsh grip of the bear’s claws on the back of his neck. He was roughly lifted by the arm and the rug he was standing on was pulled away from below, revealing a latch that was quickly yanked up by the the polar bear who had brought in Mr. Big. Gideon felt his breath catch in his chest and he began to jerk as the reality of what was ahead of him settled in. Below Gideon and Travis was a small drop into an ice pool. Barely any room to properly tread water and the surface let off a cold chill that made Gideon’s bare feet curl in panic.

“Now, just ease up a minute, sir!” Gideon said, not able to look up from the drop below that was certain to be the end of him.

“Let me make something clear,” The shrew got up from his chair, his bushy brow pushed down into a fixed gaze. “If my nephew were dead, you two would be down there now. I want to know who is responsible for ruining this happy day, just to get a swipe at killing me. I want explanations.”

“Sure, sure! We’ll tell you whatever you need! Just ease up a little!” Travis said, kicking and twisting his slinky body against the grip that held him above certain death; cold, slow, and wet death.

“If I’m to understand the events of this evening, I was about to eat a poisoned pastry meant for my mouth alone. You hand delivered it to me.” Mr. Big said, pacing back and forth, struggling to retain the manner of politeness he was accustomed to. “There’s no reason for me to ‘ease up’ on this situation. In all rights, I should do away with the two of you right now.”

“No, no! Don’t! Please-just-c’mon-aaah!” Travis squealed as that huge paw squeezed then relaxed, as if the polar bear was trying to gauge what gesture from Mr. Big would be the dramatic curtain call for the ferret to take a deep, dreadful plunge.

“My nephew ate your the cannoli and now he’s fighting for his life on his wedding day. You kindly allowed me to sample your work last night, Gideon.” The shrew steepled his fingers together, breathing deeply. “Did you change anything concerning the recipe?”

“No sir!”

“Go on and share your account.” Mr. Big said, gripping the arms of the chair as he seated himself. “We’ll give your ‘friend’ a moment to calm down.”

Gideon tried to speak without the collar inhibiting his voice, nor allow it to tremble at the predicament he found himself in. “Mr. Big, I made everything the same way I did yesterday, honest. The recipe didn’t have one ounce of anything different.” The fox’s tail had flipped up between his legs, fluffed out with fear and panic. “Someone on staff in your kitchen came by with a pepper grinder, some big sheep fella, and twisted something onto the cannoli.”

Mr. Big nodded, his mouth barely concealing the spiteful downturn of his teeth. “My nephew is dying from whatever that was. That is what you’re implying, Mr. Grey.”

“It sure wasn’t pepper!” Gideon shouted, and felt the bear loosen his grip on his arm. The pudgy fox slid a couple of sharp inches before that paw tightened again. He felt his breath go still in his lungs.

“I’m severely short on patience.” Gideon heard Mr. Big’s impassive tone, realizing this was the man who had hired him, not the wealth businessman he’d taken Mr. Big to be. The baker from Bunny Burrows gazed down into the icy pool below and began to consider whether he would ever be able to see Stu or Bonnie again. Did anybody know they were here? Maybe Nick and Judy were trying to find them after they were abducted?

Mr. Big heaved out a heavy sigh. “Is this all you can offer me? An anonymous sheep and a discarded pepper grinder?”

“All I know is that a sheep grinded something onto the cannoli. He was dressed up like one of the staff so I didn’t start questioning it until I saw it get handed over to Travis.”

The shrew’s hand came up to his brow and saw the slightest crack in his hard expression. “Why didn’t you do something?” His voice strained, trying to retain that malevolence, that stern strength, but it was failing him just from the emotion that threatened to tear him apart.

“I tried to stop him but he didn’t believe me.” He saw the wide eyed stare Travis shot towards Gideon, appalled at what was being uttered. He began to sputter and speak quickly. “I told you Mr. Big, didn’t I? I told you someone was just trying to use him. Someone’s trying to pin this on us!”

The polar bear holding Gideon up suddenly gave the fox a shake, rattling him harshly and his words turned into grunts of discomfort. He felt as though his arm might pop loose from its socket if the bear shook him any harder. The ferret beside him squirmed, his teeth chattering. “Mr. Big, he’s right! I was just trying to ask you for a job! I wanted to be apart of the family!”

The shrew chewed on his cheek, grimacing. “Pretty ironic, huh? You’re getting a first hand experience at how my family works.” Mr. Big stared hard at the ferret, his tiny claws digging into the fine wood of his chair. “Is this everything you expected? Is this what you want to be apart of?”

Travis couldn’t meet the rodent’s gaze. All he could manage was stare down into the icy pool below. His head gave the smallest shake, still denying what was in front of him.

“Apparently, you did. Just with someone else running things, huh?” Mr. Big’s expression curled down into a deep-seated frown. “Was that what you were told?”

“No, Mr. Big! That wasn’t what I was told at all! Just let me go, I didn’t know someone wanted to kill you!”

“Pathetic.” Mr. Big muttered, rubbing his forehead with a groan.

“How did you come to work as a waiter for this wedding, kid?” This time it was Koslov, the massive polar bear standing behind Mr. Big, who asked the next question. He frowned, glancing down at his boss who was clearly beside himself.

“Raymond set it up. He promised I’d belong to the family if I did this favor for him. I just had to deliver dessert to you and that’d be my chance to ask for a job.” Travis said with chattering teeth. “I didn’t think it’d hurt anyone, I swear! I just wanted a job! If I did anything wrong it was because Raymond told me to do it!”

“Whoa, hold on! There’s a Raymond fella involved in this?” Gideon spoke up, twisting his body to look over at Travis. “Trav, I was running out there to yell at some of the big bears to stop you and one named Raymond dragged me back through the kitchen and threw me outside in the trash heap when I told him about the poison!” He spoke in a stumbled rush, trying to get all the information out of his mouth in one breath. “That’s where the pepper grinder is! He took it!”

The expression on Mr. Big’s face flashed with bitterness. He leaned his head into his palm, grimacing as he gestured for Koslov to come closer. “Did Raymond leave his security post?”

The large bear nodded. “He relayed that he was getting rid of a guest that had wandered into the reception hall.”

“Mr. Grey, I’m split on what to do with you honestly.” The old rodent steepled his fingers, thinking deeply. “What you are saying implicates my own employee Raymond and your dear friend Travis in this twisted plot on my life. Your only saving grace is that you were recommended to me by Raymond on account of his knowledge that you’d be in support of my nephew’s wedding. Not merely for your rural nature, but because he had confirmation that you were a homosexual.”

Gideon tilted his head as best as he could in this awkward position he was held in. “I don’t follow, sir. I don’t see what that, um, trait has to do with all this.”

“What is your relationship with Raymond, ferret?” Mr. Big didn’t even look towards Travis, merely adjusting his tone to one of annoyance and restrained hate.

Travis began to scan the ground around the square trap door. Maybe there was something he could cling to, crawl up and dart for an exit? “H-h-he paid me to,uh,” The ferret felt his stomach turn now at the thought. This was what Raymond had in store for him all that time. Travis felt nauseous at the fresh memory of last night. “He’d give me money for sex.”

“Did Gideon Grey ever come up in any of your encounters with Raymond? Even in passing?”

Travis began to shake his head, but in an instant he felt the blood drain from his head as one memory suddenly stuck out to him. It felt as though his sinuousness body was being weighed down by an anchor. “We were talking about Raymond’s ex. He was pretty pissed about it. He wanted to know if I had anyone like an ex-boyfriend.” Travis felt like throwing up. It had come back around to him and, like always, he’d been the one to screw it all up. His eyes shifted over to Gideon nervously.

“I’m sorry, Gid. I just told him that you and I fooled around once. Raymond looked up your name and the bakery turned up. He wanted to laugh about it.” Travis couldn’t continue. That memory was still fresh in his mind. Raymond certainly wasn’t the first fella that Travis had whored himself out for some cash, but it was the first that he had realized just how far he had fallen compared to everyone in this horrid city and all the people he’d grown up with in the country side. Everyone else, even the bear who was just teasing and taunting him to get his rocks off, had found success. Why did it seem like Travis would ever get that same happiness?

He didn’t deserve it, Travis had thought to himself from that moment onward. It was the only response that he could muster.

The blank stare he got from Gideon was complex. He didn’t seem understand the significance of it all. Then, suddenly, his ears gave away that moment of insight. Someone had told Mr. Big about his bakery, especially the fact he was gay. The fox never would have gotten the call from Mr. Big if Travis hadn’t blurted out about the fox’s closest secret, one he’d been carrying all through his childhood and onward. He’d left the familiar safety of Bunny Burrows and walked right into the lion’s den, so to speak.

“You were the one who warned me about this ferret, Mr. Grey. I would not have taken much notice of him unless you alerted me to him.” The shrew said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. “I might suspect you yourself have a part to play in this if I knew you didn’t have the police on your side when you confronted me about this whelp trying to work for me.”

“Mr. Big, don’t do anything rash.” Gideon said quickly. “Judy and Nick were looking for him too! The police are going to be on this like fly tape if you drop us in there.”

“Don’t assume I don’t know how to make people dissapear, Mr. Grey. Don’t ever assume I’m never willing to do the worst in the name of family.” The boss of Tundra Town paused and in that fraction of a second, Gideon was certain he’d let them both fall. “You have a point, though. The police were hunting for him. His warrant disappeared, didn’t it?”

“That’s right! Maybe this Raymond fella of yours did something to make him look less suspicious. Just enough to let him take this job and,” The fox swallowed hard, his mouth dry. “Give Travis enough credibility to get the waiter gig and deliver the poison to you. Make him invisible and such!”

Travis tried to crane his head over to look at Gideon as best he could. “I had a warrant?”

“Is Raymond responding?” Mr. Big asked.

The massive bear behind him frowned. “No.”

“That’s not good.” Mr. Big glanced up at Koslav, his brow furrowing as the bear’s face darkened. “You think you can find him?”

“Easy enough.”

“Well, Gideon Grey,” Mr. Big said with some strange relief. “You have a life to get back to. You’re a dear friend to my grandson’s godmother whom I hold great respect towards. Not only that, but depriving Bunny Burrows of their very successful fox baker would be a crime I would have tremendous difficulty in hiding. Go home; forget about all of this.”

The fox felt his insides tremble with relief. It was a feeling unlike anything he’d felt before. Death was literally waiting for him with open jaws and the tightness of the bear’s grip on his arm left him with some hope. “Thankya, Mr. Big.”

The shrew raised and gestured towards the bear holding Travis. “Ice the ferret, Kevin.”

There was hardly a second for the gasp Travis breathed in to turn into a scream. One moment he was in the bear’s grip and the next there was a soft, crackling splash down below. Gideon Grey felt his blood turn to ice and an instant later he felt it burn, outrage arcing across every nerve of his body as he snarled and barked, “You killer! Travis, no!”

The pudgy fox swung and kicked. Despite the weight he carried, it was nothing compared to the bear who held him aloft. He could see their expressions. There was an amusement on both of their faces and the sly grin on Mr. Big’s face said enough that this was enough satisfaction to tide him by until he dealt with Travis’ benefactor. The only one who met the water drowned scream of the ferret below as the bear known as Koslov who clutched a necklace, bowing his head and frowning deeply with some reverence that Gideon could only feel more enraged by.

“Trav-HOLD ON,” Gideon twisted himself around, pulling himself up as his free paw came up and clamped down on the bear’s wrist. The baker from Bunny Burrows seemed gone now. That bully was back and his teeth were bared and his tail was swishing violently underneath. The fox’s claws came out, digging into the bear’s thick fur and carving out a red line for each nail. The sharp teeth began to snap and bite at the bear’s stubby fingers.

It was a frightening display. Suddenly, the whole room was abuzz with uncertainty. Gideon’s captor yelped with surprise, perhaps more at the wild barks and growls between each bite and swipe of his claw. It quickly got what Gideon wanted; the bear let go and Gideon felt himself falling. He banged against the side of the hole as he fell and the next instant he was sinking into the icy water.

The fury that had overtaken him was gone. Now he was surrounded by a seething cold that bit and gnawed on his body. Gid came back to himself after fighting through the initial shock. He had to find Travis. He opened his eyes, gritting his teeth despite the sting of the icy water. The hole wasn’t wide but its depth was a frightening sight. He could see a shape, long and lithe, wriggling helplessly, fighting against the weight of his wet uniform and the weakness that had overtaken him in this tiny pool. Gideon swam down, scooping both arms around the ferret and pulling him against his chest.

Swimming to the surface seemed impossible. The fox’s muscles seemed frozen. He willed them to push against the chilled water, but he could sense that they were sluggish and slow. Gazing up, it was hard to tell if he was even making progress. Worse, his chest was tight and he began to feel the strain of his lungs, begging for air. Gideon kicked out his legs, scrambling with find purchase with his toe nails and shifting Travis under an arm. To his horror, he felt his claws scrape downward. He was right; the two of them were sinking, despite his efforts. With his one free arm and two feet, he began to kick and pull, digging his claws into the icy walls until he felt as though they’d fall off.

The surface of the pool was growing brighter, however. He suddenly realized there was still that chance that the light of the room above was only a deceitful victory. Even if he swamp up, would he have the strength to climb out? What was stopping them from closing the trapdoor and dooming the two outright? That intense terror was flexing in Gideon’s every muscle and he tried to shake it off. There was no point in guessing what would happen until he got there; if he got there. He couldn’t let them just decide they were already dead. He had to break the surface.

Gideon’s heart was racing. His claws scraped along the ice walls and soon he felt his body start to give out. The top of the pool was right there, the chunks of ice floating about aimlessly as Gideon’s paw pushed out through the frozen rim of the hole. He dug his digits into what he could, thrashing now that he knew they were nearly there. Lungs screaming, he kicked furiously with what strength he had left. Air was a terrible thing for him suddenly. He needed it, but every breath he took brought a chill that made every movement all them more painful.

Travis. Had to get him up. He couldn’t feel that arm though. Went numb. Horror suddenly hooked into Gideon’s brain as he glanced down, coughing and sputtering, praying he didn’t let Travis slip out from under him in their climb. He felt a pull on one of his legs and saw the ferret was still under, clutching the fox’s pants and using his claws to scramble up the fox’s thick figure that took up most of the rim. Gideon couldn’t even feel the sharp nicks he expected he might have otherwise felt. It was simply too cold, his body trembling all over as he struggled to keep himself up.

Travis’ arms shot out of the water, wrapping around Gideon’s shoulders and the little ferret clung on for the life of him, teeth chattering. Gideon sputtered, trying to call out, to see what was happening up above. All he could see was the ceiling. 

“Mr. Big!” Gideon shouting, his voice cracking. “Let us out!”

He treaded the water best he could. There wasn’t an answer.

“Mr. Big, your nephew wouldn’t want this! Please, you know this is wrong!” Gideon pleaded. He felt his claws skittered weakly on the icy edge he was clutching. The shrew was shrewd. He felt safe, convinced he’d gotten everything he could out of the two. Clearly he would have liked to spare Gideon, but no way was Gideon going to let Mr. Big let them drown and keep his consciousness clear. “We’re the only ones who know what happened that aren’t on your payroll! If Raymond set this up, how do you know he’s the only one who wants you dead! We’re the only ones you can trust!”

Another long, deadly silence haunted them both in this moment. Travis simply quivered, tiny arms wrapped around Gideon’s neck, while the big fox could only kick and slap his claws at the wood above, trying to get a grasp onto freedom. 

Suddenly, the immense bear Koslov leaned over the hole in the floor. He crouched down, his face struck with a remorseful grimace as he looked down on the two near frozen mammals. Gideon half expected his paw to be slapped away or the trapdoor to slam shut on them, but instead Koslov reached down and dipped his arm into the icy water. His huge, warm paw grasped the fox and lifted him up with the ferret tightly clasped against his chest.

The weren’t dropped back down onto the floor. Instead, Koslov shrugged off his large coat and bundle the two in it, glancing warily at the two bears who had held Gideon and Travis before their plunge. 

“Take ‘em to one of the master bathrooms.” Mr. Big muttered, still seated in his chair. He stared down at the floor, his mind riddled with doubts and regrets. Gideon didn’t have time, nor the strength, to say anything. All he could do was clutch Travis as tightly as he could as the two of them were carried out of the room.

 

\- - -

 

The tiled floor was wet from the steam that filled the whole room. Both and Gideon were still shivering, bunched up together in the thick coat of Koslov. The polar bear finally turned off the nearly overflowing bathtub. He shook his head, sighing as he spoke. “It is best if you two undressed and let the steam coax you back to health. Do not get in that tub.” He pointed with a sharp jab, as though he was setting down a law for children. “This has to be a slow process.”

Gideon nodded, teeth clacking together. He found it terrible to get himself out of the thick, no doubt, expensive coat. Worse was trying to keep standing despite the stiffness in his legs. He could barely feel them. He leaned down, trying to help Travis down. “Come on, down we go.” He muttered, trying to pry the ferret’s frozen arms from around his neck. He’d been stricken with terror when they were carried to the bathroom. Travis had been so still and he had been so numb he couldn’t tell if his best friend had made it out alright. To his relief, the ferret’s bristly arms slid off and he collapsed onto his rump, his legs giving up under him.

“I’ll leave you two be for now. Don’t leave the room.” Koslov crouched down and retrieved two thick towels from under the sink and placed them beside the smaller predators. “Try to relax. Get warm. I’ll talk to the boss.”

“Thankya,” Gideon said as he tried to pry the frozen shirt from his thick frame. “Ya saved our hides, mister.”

The bear paused, his bulk taking up the entire doorway. “I suppose I did.” Mr. Big’s right hand bear shut the door firmly and Gideon got to work on the undershirt that was stuck to his fur. It peeled off with a crackle of ice that was slowly melting in the growing steam that began to build into a fog. 

The fox hissed as he started to wiggle out of his pants, breathing harshly. “Bet he’s a sweet fella when he’s not making popsicles out of folks.” The laugh he forced out was trembling. As hard he tried he was still struggling with a pit of fear in his heart. They’d almost died. Hell, Travis was expected to die. Gideon glanced over at the ferret and saw him struggling to drag the nearby towel around himself.

“Here, let me help.” Gideon said, crawling over and pulled the soft towel around the mustelid’s shoulders.

Travis kept his eyes fixed on the tiled floor. He was still trembling all over.

“You gotta get those clothes off you, Travis.”

“I c-c-c-can’t-,” He said in a gasp. “Maa-moo-ove.”

Gideon nodded, forcing a bigger smile as he rubbed the ferret’s head with the towel. He had to get Travis warm. “Ain’t no surprise. You made quite the splash.” Gideon arms snaked around , fiddling with the several buttons for the vest and shirt Travis wore. “Hell, least we would’ve died dressed nice if they didn’t pull us up!”

The ferret arms were limp as Gideon shuffled the shirt up and over Travis’ head. He tried to dry the ferret’s head, the warm humid air finally making him feel at ease. Travis still seemed struck dumb with everything that had happened.

“You need help with your pants?” Gideon asked.

Travis shook his head slowly. He reached down and fidgeted with the button. It felt like he should be running. Like there was an urgency that he understood had no outlet considering he couldn’t feel the tips of his fingers. He saw Gideon start to move around to help and Travis pulled the towel over his whole body. “Can you just,” He spoke with a harsh stammer. “Stop helping? For a second?”

The fox’s eyes widened a bit in surprise, then glanced away quickly. “Yeah, yeah, sure-sure.”

Gideon hung his own towel around his body, turning his back to Travis. He rolled his thumb around, hunting for the zipper. Every sound in the room echoed and the slow, awkward silence that followed the lowering of his zipper made Gideon wince. He remembered back when they were kids when getting naked with Travis wasn’t such an awkward ordeal. He kept looking over his shoulder, trying to gauge how Travis was doing under the thick towel, before he finally pushed his pants down, underwear too. He opened the towel a bit, trying to get some of the hot steam under the makeshift cloak he had wrapped around him.

“Are you okay?” Gideon asked. He had to know.

Travis didn’t answer immediately. He was still struggling with that one button on his pants. “Naw,” He muttered. “We almost died.”

“Yeah.”

Travis could feel his throat growing full with a deep sadness he hated and despised. It was a deprecating self-pity that he knew had no place here. Gideon had almost died when it should have been just him. The most selfish thing he could be doing was feeling sorry for himself.

“Do you need help with your pants? You ain’t gonna warm up unless-”

“I got ‘em.” Travis said with a grunt of frustration. He scooted them down his legs and he started to feel the harsh pain in his nethers. He felt a soreness spreading across his body the warmer it got. He kicked his clothes across the floor away from him, curling up and pulling the towel over himself, trembling.

“I hate to sound like a stupid porno,” Gideon said with a chuckle under his breath. “But I think we oughta get close and hug or something. To get warm faster.”

“I’m okay.”

“You’re shaking.”

“We almost died. Why wouldn’t I be shaking?”

“I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

Travis finally turned to glare at Gideon. “Can’t you just accept that sometimes there’s nothing you can do to help, Gid?”

“Nope. First thing I kind of learned when we were kids was that I could make other kid’s day just the worst. I got a kick out of it, knowing I had that kind of power. Ain’t no reason why it can’t be the other way around. I know you’re scared, but we got to work together. I don’t blame you for what happened at the wedding.”

“All I wanted was a chance at getting a career I could be proud of. I don’t know how-no, I know how all it got this bad.” Travis brought the towel closer, his teeth still chattering from the cold in his bones. “I just feel like all this is hopeless. Some part of me doesn’t even want things to get better. I don’t deserve anything good. I’m tired of trying. I’m tired of letting people down.”

The sound of Gideon’s feet stepping softly behind him made Travis stiffen. He didn’t know if was ready for whatever was about to happen. Yet, the instant he felt Gideon’s arm encircle him, pulling him closer to the fox’s plush front, he could instantly sense the warmth that simply radiated off the fox’s bulk. Gideon settled his muzzle over Travis’ shoulder and made a gentle hush. “I wouldn’t have dropped myself into an icy pool if I didn’t think you deserved to be happy. You’re gonna get better.”

Travis felt the warm words meld with the soft pressure of those arms, the towel, and the steam billowing around them all coalesce into something that he couldn’t quite explain.

Even if everything outside the door was just more misery and more danger, he was certain this was good. Gideon was good. For once, the smile he wore wasn’t burdened with a promise he had to keep or an obligation that would ruin. All this was unconditional.

“You’re going to be okay, Travis.”

“Thanks, Gid.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's been awhile. I have a job that I treasure. I have more money saved up than ever. I have the power of anti-depressants. I'M SO BUSY. The reason for not writing as much anymore is simply that I haven't yet adjusted my time to this new job and all. My apologies for that, but I figured I might as well shove this out so those of you burning for it can be sated. 
> 
> I am truly grateful for any and all who read this story and many others. I hope to provide more for you in the coming year. Especially ones that have some kind lewd action (gotta make you guys wait more on this ship sadly lol)

The icy clumps of their fur had melted long ago but both fox and ferret still had the shivers. Gideon still kept his arms circled around Travis all the while. The ferret didn’t complain or wrench himself , but he still trembled; more likely from the terror that had just transpired. Travis’ lungs still had a cold searing spark with every odd breath he took.

There was a harsh knock. It made the two predators jump in surprise. The door opened slowly and Koslov, the same polar bear that had yanked them out of the icy pool, stuck his muzzle in, trying to peer through the steam. “Just checking in. Still cold?”

“Naw, not so much.” Gideon mumbled.

“May I come in?”

Gideon shrugged from under the thick towel. “Don’t see why not.”

The polar bear scooted in, lumbering to the sink and setting down their dried outfits. “How are you feeling?” He rumbled softly, glancing at the two smaller mammals.

Gideon felt a little hotter at the realization that they were both naked underneath that towel. The fox scooted back, curling his own towel back around himself. “Scared out of our wits, but still alive I guess.”

“Are you here to tell us how long we’ve got?” Travis asked, his eyes downcast.

“So long as you do as Mr. Big asks, you can expect to make it back to your own private lives without any more harassment from him or my men. He will need your help to clear up a few loose ends.” The bear said, his muzzle drooping with distaste.

Travis cocked his head, confused. “Shouldn’t we be hearing this from Mr. Big?”

“If you’re lucky, you won’t be speaking to Mr. Big again.” The bear turned, his dark jowls dipped in a tight frown. 

“Frankly, I figured that’d be a given.” Gideon said, trying to crack a smile out of the bear but he kept his stoic expression. “What’s the guy need?”

“First, to confirm our suspicions about Raymond. Once you’re dressed we shall go visit him.”

Travis felt his whole spine twist and spasm with panic. “We have to be in the same room as that creep? What for?” He stammered, looking between Gideon and Koslov.

“Just get dressed and follow me once you’re ready.” Koslov said, opening the door and stepping outside. He held it open for a single moment, “You’re not out of this yet. We need you to perform one service in return for this mercy.”

As gentle as the door shut, it still made the frame shudder at the might the bear appeared to possess. 

“I just want to be done with this.” Travis moaned, burying his head into the depths of the huge towel.

Gideon stretched, shedding his modesty and hopping up to snatch his white uniform. “We’re going to get outta this mess. I promise,” He stepped into his underwear, grunting as he wiggled his thick hips into the tight briefs. “Hmph! Think these things must’ve shrunk in their dryer or something. Least they’re toasty!”

“This isn’t funny, Gid.” Travis followed suit, though more hesitantly. These clothes were possibly the same he might have drowned in. Putting them on felt like dressing up for his own funeral. “Like Koslov said, we’re still wrapped up in this.”

“It sounds like he’s got a plan to get us out,” Gideon retorted, hiking his tail and trying to steady it enough to button down through the pants loop. Usually he could just slip it through a stretchy hole that his jeans had, not this fancy button-down junk Mr. Big bought for him. “I say we do what he says. Play by their rules and we’ll get back to the Burrows just fine.”

Travis blinked, finally turning to scowl at Gideon. “Who said we were going back to Bunny Burrows?”

Gideon paused before renewing his struggle. “You want to stay in this town after everything that’s happened? This city ain’t been kind to you, Travis.”

“Doesn’t mean I can’t try again.”

“I know, I know. It’s like you said though; we almost died. I’m just,” Gideon breathed in and for a moment his ears sagged along with his tone. “I’m scared you’re going to get hurt. I don’t want that to happen.”

Travis felt his teeth clack together. He didn’t know if he was annoyed with Gid or himself. Maybe today had just gone so bombastically horrid that he see past five minutes in the future. The ferret moved behind Gideon, pushing his large paws away from his pants and grasping the fox’s tail roughly. 

“I’ll do it. Hold still.” He frowned, fastening the button in place and attending to his own tail effortlessly along with the rest of his outfit. “I’ll think about it.”

Gideon’s smile returned and he tucked his shirt in with renewed gusto.

\- - - - -

The huge manor Mr. Big lived in was immense; a strange fixation on the breadth of his influence. Pretty shallow to have so much space for a shrew, Gideon thought. Though, if he had to impress all sizes of animals in the snowy town he might have followed suit.

What he didn’t expect was how sound proof the walls were.

There was a sharp crack and a loud roar that bellowed from the room Koslov opened. Travis jumped, scooting behind Gideon out of instinct. Gideon himself couldn’t help but feel his toes tingle with a growing unease.

“Are you feeling any more cooperative now, Raymond?” Koslov asked as he entered the room. Gideon and Travis huddled behind him, staring at grim sight. A polar bear was on his knees, trying to roll back up before one of the four bears in the room shoved him back down. It wasn’t a pretty sight. Blood dribbled down his muzzle. An eye was closed from the thick swelling that bulged up under his fur. He clutched his side with one paw, gritting his teeth and suppressing a growl as Koslov approached.

“You’re making a mistake. We shouldn’t be taking orders from some pint-sized cupcake!” Raymond roared. Gideon and Travis kept to the far wall where they entered.

Koslov’s muzzle sagged as he shook his head. “You were apart of our family, Raymond. Seeing you turn against the boss like this breaks my heart. Not only that,” He stepped aside, making sure the bloodied bear could see the fox and ferret behind him, “Dragging one of your booty calls into this mess? No wonder it all went belly up on you.”

“I wanted you in charge, Koslov! Ask any of the boys! They don’t give a rat’s ass for that pompous shrew,” Raymond’s words were slurred from the odd way his mouth moved after what must have been a brutal beating. “You can still be on the right side of history, boss. Let me go and we can rip Mr. Big apart. We’re bears! Ain’t no one deserve to be on top other than us.”

“For goodness sake, Raymond. The whole city just went through that kind of crisis. We ought to put this unpleasantness behind us. Tell me who put you up to this.”

Raymond scoffed, sniffing a trail of leaking blood back up one nostril. “Like helping you is going to help me.”

“I disagree.” Koslov began to circle the bound polar bear, his voice growing thicker and rolling each word off his tongue slowly, patiently, “Your time with Mr. Big is over, clearly. But, what you do next is up to you. You can refuse to give us what we desire, which is merely a name and a location for who provided you with this plan to kill the boss. Doing so means we will take grand measures to silence you. The amount of unsavory things we can nail on the door of the ZPD is astonishing. The things we could tell your fellow inmates would even appall you. I doubt you’ll ever walk the streets of Tundra Town again.” Koslov paused, standing over Raymond with a heavy frown, unsettled by his own words. “Telling us what we want will buy you a five year sentence at the very least. Time to clear your brain of whatever vile poison soaked your moral fiber to Mr. Big.”

Raymond stared, then his bloodied muzzle cracked into a smile. “You can’t be serious; that’s your deal?” He let out a throaty laugh, “Who’s to say I even want to take Mr. Big’s offer? Maybe the animals I work with are more powerful than you think!”

“If this organization hopes to assassinate the kingpin of Tundra Town relies on a polar bear that guards a limousine parking lot, a ferret who sells sex and DVD tapes on the street, and a baker ignorant of the whole plan then I doubt they hold any influence at all. Face it, Raymond,” Koslov leaned forward and Travis realized just how larger this old bear was compared to the rest. He dwarfed Raymond, making him settle so deep into the seat he was bound to that Travis believed it might snap under the weight of the uncaring glare of Koslov. “Mr. Big could care less what happens to you so long as he gets vengeance on who is responsible for poisoning his nephew. The offer I gave you is only valid if Benny survives.” 

The room seemed to grow cold and Raymond’s eyes. He darted his wide eyed gaze between the other bears. Their faces were hardened, some spiteful. Save for one.

“Kevin,” Raymond said in a hushed voice. “Come on. Back me up here.” 

Travis followed Raymond’s eyes up to the bear next to him. His face was sullen, downcast towards the floor, and his teeth squeezed together. His eyes narrowed, casting a glance up towards Koslov. The titanic bear held his harsh glare, unflinching. 

A gust of hot air flew from Kevin’s nostrils as he growled. “You poisoned someone during their wedding.” 

“It was for the old shrew! You know the bears are the top meat in Tundra Town; we ought to be running things!”

Kevin’s expression darkened, and he gave a nod towards Koslov. “If Benny dies, I want to be your first consideration for icing this scum.”

“Alright, alright! Lets talk about it!” Raymond said, speaking quickly as he whirled his head back towards Koslov. “This was all Doug’s idea! I only got people in the right place!”

“Nice start. Describe Doug to me.” Koslov asked.

“Sheep fella. Real ornery. Smart guy too! He has some lab or something in one of the houseboats parked on the southern riverside of town. One of the alley’s in Wayver’s Drive will lead straight to where it sits on the water.”

“This was his plan, yes? Is there anyone else?”

“Besides the runt back there, no.” Raymond nodded towards Travis, adding a snarl to his sentence. “You going to ice the kid who tried to kill Mr. Big?”

Koslov shrugged, turning to leave. Gideon and Travis shared nervous looks. 

“Follow.” Koslov stated.

\- - - - -

“Why you got to send us of all people?” Gideon grumbled as he tried to ease himself deeper into the thick coat they were given once they had left Mr. Big’s manor. Even in the luxurious limousine, he felt the chill that had seemed to burrow into his bones. “Why not just call the police?”

“This incident is best handled privately. Mr. Big has to maintain his reputation and show he can control even this most tragic of circumstances. Getting the ZPD involved only allows them to use this as an opportunity to investigate other matters.” Koslov eyed them both, grinning broadly when he turned towards Travis. They hadn’t nay spare coats in his size and the one he currently was loaned felt more like a puffy straight-jacket that was five sizes too large. “No one should suspect you.”

Travis pinned his ears back, wary of the bear’s long pause. “How will we know we’ve done what you want? This is going to be more than just checking out a lead you got out of Raymond.”

The polar bear’s heavy muzzle twitched. “Raymond is attached to this case. If there’s any evidence that he’s involved there your job is to get rid of it. Rip it up, toss it in the river Hell,” Koslov wrapped the burly coat around Travis’ long, lithe body and suppressed a laugh. “Sink the whole boat if you must.”

The ferret rolled his eyes. “Uh huh. I’m sure it’s equipped with an emergency conspiracy dingy.”

Gideon wrapped his arms up tight as the car door swung open to the frigid air of Tundra Town. “That’s a good point. You got anything that’ll pound our way in?”

“There’s a crowbar in the trunk. It should suit the purposes for this job.”

Travis hopped onto the frozen sidewalk, leering at Koslov warily. “You’re promising you’ll let us go when this is over?” He kept his gaze on the bear as Gideon rooted around in the trunk.

“We keep our promises. We also sympathize.” The older predator’s eyes seemed to soften their hard look as they focused on the ferret. “Many of us have come from hardship not too far from your hapless situation, Travis.”

“Does that mean you’ll give me a second chance?”

Koslov’s expression quickly glowered down to scowl.

“Figured.” Travis rolled his eyes and gazed out towards the streets of Tundra Town. The expanse of white snow settling onto the already fluffy ground made him flex his toes reflexively. It wouldn’t be a comfortable walk.

“We appreciate it all the same,” Gideon said, taking the massive polar bear’s paw in his own, shaking it earnestly, “Just be ready to pick us up once we’re done with our snooping.”

Koslov nodded and without another word he bowed into the limousine and it left the two on the street corner.

Travis had already started down the path, aiming for the river that ran several bridges. Under one of them would be the boat they needed to break into. Gideon stumbled through the packed snow, gusts of hot air blowing out of his mouth. “Got out of that fix! Nice work, Travis. I guess we’re as much as a duo as much now than when we were kids.”

Travis felt the burn of apathy flare up. He smothered it as best he could, tucking himself into the puffy coat he was buried in. “I preferred the pond more than the death pool. Wish we had to break into a spa instead of just some stupid boat.”

“Ha! I never been to one of those places. Figure a sauna is just the kind of treatment we need after a night like tonight.”

“Oof, imagine getting a massage after tonight.” Travis rolled his shoulders up and down, wincing hard. “I feel like I’m made of cardboard.”

“Heck, we oughta negotiate some reward for sticking our necks out like this.”

“Knowing how business works in Zootopia they probably have dozens of coupons.” Travis said. Gideon’s cheery nature in this most dire of circumstances was stifling the edge of the evenings turnabout.

“I think I had some in the hotel room I was staying at. Lost the room key after this whole mess so I doubt we’ll find a way to melt all this tension.”

“Remind me if we survive and I’ll work some knots outta ya, Gid. Least I could do after getting you mixed up in this whole mess.”

Gideon waved a dismissive paw at the ferret. “Ain’t no thing. Besides you probably worked enough knots off before all this.” There was a pause and Gideon’s ears flipped back against his skull. “I mean, when you do the massage thing when you’re working.” 

Travis flicked his head towards the fox, gaping. “When I’m working?” He repeated.

Gideon’s eyes widened. “Yeah,” He mumbled with a cough, “When, you know, you do your thing.”

The ferret blinked, twisting his head to one side. “Please, keep digging this hole you want to bury yourself in.”

The fox’s mouth hung open, as though in disbelief. “Wow. Uh, I’m assuming a lot aren’t I?”

“Oh yeah, you got me deduced to a T.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make this rude or awkward.” Gideon bundled his arms together, his teeth finally starting to click together. “I just heard how the bears were talking about you and it took me by surprise.”

Travis breathed a sigh. “I understand. There are a lot of things you weren’t expecting out of me when we met.”

“Long as you aren’t unhappy. That’s all I care about.”

They walked under a flickering street lamp and Travis glanced over at the fox’s face. He was shocked when he locked eyes with Gideon Grey and saw something he didn’t often see. The fox was being genuine. It was startling looking at Gideon now. The differences were striking not just in his tone and personality. The fox’s very nature seemed to have swiveled away from all the ugliness that had clung to him as a kid and what was left was everything Travis had adored him for.

“Just know when you’re perpetrating the myth. Whoring yourself out ain’t luxurious as the movies make it out to be.” Travis could feel his ears burn red. He wasn’t used to speaking so casually about this aspect of his life. “Ain’t as clean either.”

“You really tackle that bear though? That’s as brave as anything I’d ever dare to do.”

“Why? You feel impotent when another guys bigger than you?” Travis punched the fox’s arm. “Knowing you, you’re used to being the top dog. Sure made sure to remind everyone about it when we were kids.”

Gideon chuckled, at ease at this playful gesture. “Heck, ain’t my fault I’m big boned!”

“Big belly more like!” Travis punched again, this time at the fox’s plush middle.


End file.
